While Humans Built

while humans built towers
the meaning was in stars
and the petals of flowers

spun on an orb weaver’s thread
sparkling with dew,
tapped in the fertile soil
by the tree’s persistent roots,
tossed by the brute wind
like the dead leaves of autumn

flowing like the cool, clear waters
of the ground-sprung creek

cleansing like the rain
warming like the sun
blanketing like snow stores undone
flying on the wings of birds and butterflies
churning up the earth like worms
standing firm like rock
eroding like sand

and

like the great willow
ever growing toward the sky
still, cascading to the ground
sheltering life
in its tent
of leaves
draped
around

while humans built towers
the beauty was in stars
and the petals of flowers

~

Words and Photography ©2018 Tanya Cliff ~ to contact me

Posted in poetry & free verse.

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33 thoughts on “While Humans Built

  1. Tanya, nicely done. I think the willow is a terrific metaphor. Maybe that is why it was used in Avatar as the sage. Keith

    1. Thank you, Keith. There is a huge, old willow tree in a park I like to hike. One evening, my group hiked later than intended and lost the trail back to the parking lot. It was that tree, spotted off in the distance at the edge of a field, that denoted the path (after several hours of wandering in the dark, no flashlights. 😂) I love that tree! I am glad you liked the piece.

      1. Truly a beacon for you and your fellow hikers. Maybe that is a reason someone at some point found out about its medicinal nature.

  2. ‘while humans built towers
    the beauty was in stars
    and the petals of flowers’

    My favorite lines <3

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