A ROCKY ROAD FOR TWO TREES

Two trees

breathe in unison,

reach for sun,

sleep under moon

and take breath

from the stars.

They survive plagues:

frogs, lice, swarms,

blight, boils, hail,

locusts ,and darkness.

No poison ivy,

oak and sumac

crawl up trunks

and ticks picked off

one by one.

Togetherness

requires patience,

kindness,

and the art of differing.

With sunlight and rain,

tender pruning

each bud nurtured.

Like twin pontoons

of a catamaran,

they fly across the sea

and never capsize.

No emerald ash borer,

their roots are deep

and prevent

toppling over.

The best of friends,

they grow lollypops for kids,

nuts for goats,

and keeps chainsaws at bay.

Every day can’t be Arbor Day.

There will be days of black sun,

drought, and hurricane winds.

But sap always runs in spring.

They Rent-a- fence for privacy,

wrap branches around each other

and forget they’re just trees,

just two smiling faces,

Petals on a wet, black bough.