WE ARE LIKE TREES
We are like trees. When a seed
of an oak tree is placed in earth
and given water, then light, the
life of that oak tree begins. When
a ***** enters an ****, the life
of a human being begins; all
other arguments are specious.
Both need special care. Given
that care, the oak seed will sprout
from the earth and continue to
grow. The human embryo needs
nine months in the womb before
it will be put into a nursery. The oak
sprout will, most likely, need to
be in a nursery from its conception.
If cared for, both the tiny, tiny tree
and the tiny, tiny human being
will grow bigger. The key is care,
and the caring is love. Over years,
decades, both will grow larger and
stronger. Both will face illnesses,
and in the vast majority of cases,
will survive them. Trees will show
leaves, grow bark, provide shade
and beauty, even as they grow
their own seeds. Human beings
will learn more and more as they
grow older and older. Trees will
let robins and squirrels make
their homes in them. Human
beings will grow compassionate
and wise; many will shepherd in
new life to care for. Both will grow
old, but before they die, they will
look back on their lives and remem-
ber the love they themselves en-
joyed and shared with each other.
Copyright 2020 Tod Howard Hawks
A graduate of Andover and Columbia College, Columbia University, Tod Howard Hawks has been a poet and human-rights advocate his entire adult life. He recently finished his first novel, A CHILD FOR AMARANTH.
