Bonsai Tree - Oct 15 2021

 

Bonsai Tree

Oct 15 2021

It's been there for years,

planted against the foundation

facing due north.

Yet the small spruce has barely grown

in indirect sun

in my dry clay soil.

Where nothing can kill this wiry runt,

a gritty fighter

that survives despite.

Its needles are scant, but substantial,

with a thick coating of wax

to fend off the elements.

And its thin branches are dense,

with the tightly packed rings

of slow-growing plants.

I am reminded of the stunted trees

that cling to mountaintops,

or perch in the depths

of steep-sided gullies;

sturdy wizened things,

whose small size

belies their fabulous age.

What was I thinking

expecting it to flourish

in such a stingy space?

But it persists, nevertheless,

deprived of light

and in spite of my neglect.

So I remember this tree

when times get hard.

A frugal survivor,

small in size

but tough inside.

A bonsai tree

clinging to life in hardscrabble soil,

despite the cold wind and meagre sun

of its grim northern exposure.