Abandoned Tree

Silver tinsel clings

to brown needles

like arms that can’t let go.

When I see a Christmas tree

lying next to the curb,

I wonder what secrets

are hidden in its branches.

Is there joy of

a family united

or sorrow the season

left a void?

What were the memories

written in wrapping

 paper and ribbon

where the tree once stood?

The evergreen that was

the decorated centerpiece

of a Christmas holiday

now lies brown and abandoned.

I can’t know the story

that sits silent in its limbs.

All I can do as I stand

over its crumbling glory

is hope that if it could speak

it would tell me, “I saw Peace.”

©Susie Clevenger 2012

Photograph: Photobucket