The Willow Tree

Is going to stay

The Will of the Willow

Bending, rotten, filled with life, I persist

For seventy years I’ve watched over this yard.

I am not quite the tree I once was. Several of my limbs are dead and likely to fall off soon. Several colonies of insects dwell within my trunk. As a willow however, I am able to endure all of this. If taken care of, I likely have another thirty more years.

Some would like me to go immediately.

Humans from neighbouring dwellings do not like me. They find my dead limbs both unsightly and threatening. Some find the toys that cling to my branches and trunk distasteful. There are others nearby who prefer smaller plants. They find my shadow to be problematic.

I’ve heard rumblings from some about cutting me down. They believe they can make things better by eliminating my shadow. They think they can create more light in the yards. The children will be more safe without the ropes that cling to my limbs. The children will be more safe without my dead limbs threatening to crush them. The…