Inspired by the above photo (and all the trees I’ve ever loved) for Kaitlyn Sanchez’s Fall Writing Frenzy contest, here is:

TREE REVERIE                        (162 words)

By Maureen Egan

Tree lovers sightsee when they have a minute;

we scroll our mind’s eye and suddenly we’re in it.

When the wind blows leaves and blossoms, color has a sound.

Swinging in the shade, we’re far from earthbound.

A hammock’s a comfy perch for spotting chickadees

Squirrels sail between branches on a flying trapeze.

Loblolly pines are tall, skinny folks who don’t bend their knees

Poplar rows are sentries stiffly waiting for “At Ease!”

A Japanese maple copied the hairdo of a lady down the street

Cedars pose like dancers swaying to their needles’ beat.

Birches are cartoonists who wear faces on their sleeve—

a dead oak’s finger beckons—yikes—phew—it’s just make-believe!

A climber lumbers skyward with champion’s broad shoulders—

its roots clinging tight to moss-covered boulders.

Dogwoods and redbuds burst open on cue—

fir trees look frosted when the snow is new.

Tree lovers hug trees when they get together—

though the practice is questionable in this kind of weather!