The Dried-up Tree
POETRY FORMAT, 1 Mar 2021
Dr. Ravi P. Bhatia – TRANSCEND Media Service
A tree looks gorgeous when it is leafy and green
It provides us with twigs, clean air and oxygen
Birds build nests and lay their eggs in a green tree
On a hot day sitting under its shadows we feel so free
Lord Buddha got enlightenment sitting under a Bodhi tree
Even if we don’t get inspiration like the blessed Lord
We can sleep peacefully and live in his accord
Trees give us delicious fruit — grapes and berries
Which help us in making sweets and pastries
Don’t forget the delicious apples and oranges
But the kings of fruit are the heavenly mangoes
Take away its leaves, a tree looks so forlorn
From admiration it is now an object of scorn
A dried-up tree looks like an old person sitting alone
Without family or friends — they avoid such a man
Forgetting how nice and helpful he was earlier
How much he loved his children and the pet terrier
A symbol of energy, verve and goodness
A man of joy, wisdom and robustnes
Even if the tree has lost its leaves
It still has its roots firmly in the soil
Likewise a man sitting all alone
Has experience, through efforts and toil
So don’t bypass a dried up tree
Don’t avoid the lonesomeness of the elderly
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Dr Ravi P Bhatia is a member of the TRANSCEND Network for Peace Development Environment, an educationist, Gandhian scholar and peace researcher. Retired professor, Delhi University. His new book, A Garland of Ideas—Gandhian, Religious, Educational, Environmental was published recently in Delhi. ravipbhatia@gmail.com
Tags: Life, Nature, Poetry, Tree
This article originally appeared on Transcend Media Service (TMS) on 1 Mar 2021.
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