Across the street
lives a wizened tree
on the grounds
of the local elementary school.
The tree has spent its days
watching over generation
after generation
of children.
The school
opened in 1935,
to meet the city’s need
for another segregated school.
What once held
a silk factory on the edge of town
now buzzed with young Black voices.
The tree was shorter
back then —
less girth, less stability.
Still an attraction
for children
looking for a leg up.
In 1969,
after Martin Luther King
was killed,
the school planted a smaller tree
in commemoration.
Everyone understood
he had died taking a risk,
for them.
The tree welcomed
the new lithe sapling,
fresh buds, young limbs.
A half century later,
times have changed.
The school welcomes all students.
But the tree,
never saw a difference
between one child and another —
all bright smiles, steady feet.
Today
I watch children
climbing the tree’s sturdy trunk,
resting on its limbs.
The tree has expanded —
vertically and horizontally.
Growth has slowed with age,
90 years is nothing to sneeze at!
But, the tree
remains resilient.
As children pour out
into the sparkling sunshine
for recess
I can almost see the tree
straighten up,
ready to greet them
with open arms.
**If you look closely at the photograph, you can see children climbing the base of the tree 😊
A Reading Life 
What a great story and a beautiful tree, Do you know the type of tree? I love it’s growth habit. Just like the growth of the school from a few kept apart to welcoming all.
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Stunning writing filled with the “wizened” tree’s wisdom and history. This line made my heart swell-
“But the tree,
never saw a difference
between one child and another —
all bright smiles, steady feet.”
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What an amazing tree – what a life it has had. Your poem speaks to all of this. I hope its journey continues long into the future.
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What a powerful poem, beautifully capturing the life and resilience of the playground tree. The way you intertwine the tree’s growth with the history of the school and the people it has witnessed over the years is inspiring. I especially love the line, “But the tree, never saw a difference between one child and another,” as it speaks to the universal nature of love and inclusion.
Reading your poems has become one of my favorite things about this challenge 🙂
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Oh! I love this poem. What a tree! In so many ways.
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Another powerful poem with a heartfelt story attached AND another tree poem! The school’s trees are the souls of their community.
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