I can not give away this Image
engraved in my vision
as I stood
beside giants while hidden

mighty titans
the picture
the trees that hid me
in the shadows
like a villain

thrown together in the moment
I looked high
into the sky
had to cover my eyes
  extend my hand for an introduction

my gesture sat unmoved,
unworthy
the trees remain solemn

absurd, how troubling it would be
if a Tree answered me
as a friend
to attend a function

crazy as it seems
the perfect witness is a tree
to keep a secret
an alliance unspoken


A maze of roots
tangled the soil
twisting,
turning,
almost impossible to follow
to my feet
to a connection  

in the privacy of the trees
I saw you first
you were carving
the heart of another

a betrayed tree
wore the scarred heart  
amber in color
like old blood no longer red

I found you there
like all the tears
that do not fall
instead I am drowning in my head

the knife
came from your pocket
  you were kissing me
taking me to a place unexpected

With precision our letters
appeared in the center
of the tree,
of the heart,
of the past

pride, walked me along the path
to the trees,
to the heart,
to you,
to the sharpest of knives
I keep in your chest

time has slipped away
no forward,
no back,
no simply,
left me in trespass

my titan trees
did not protest
the screams
the blood
that still run
along the roots
twisting the turns
from you to me at last


Terry D’Arcy-Ryan