Apple Tree

I had a seed and planted it in soil soft and gentle.
The seed took root and soon became a seedling.
Its small green shoots warmed my heart to see.
A leaf appeared, then two, then many more.
Each day the plant grew, enlarging my affections.

I could not imagine looking out and not seeing it there.
The window steamed, touched by breath, hiding my plant in mist.
Its stem lengthened, hardened, and in time became sturdy and thick.
A bark covering protected it from the elements.
Each day it grew a little taller, a little wider, a little deeper.


I saw a small tree rising from the earth.
The ground below it dried and cracked, but still it thrived.
Its branches sprouted other branches, interweaving and crossing a hundred times.
A breath caught in my chest at the sight of the vital green tapestry.
Each day the sun beat on the growing tree, casting a livid glow beneath its branches.

I smelled the blossoms before they promised wondrous things to come.
The flowers ventured brief appearance, and then the tree tucked them into their evening folds.
Its nursing manner amazed me, and made me realize it was truly caring and beautiful.
A small bird family moved into its branches in the deepest cluster of lovely blooms.
Each day their song swelled, lifting my expectations, raising my handsome tree into its mature form.

I trembled when the rot set in.
The terrible rain that later season beat mercilessly against all plants, but especially my tree.
Its leaves were punctured by the storms and they started to curl and brown.
A white scar burned a path in the lower portion of the trunk, along its shaded region.
Each day it spread wider and wider, until I knew what had to be done.

I lifted my arms in preparation, my heart strung with salted tendrils.
The tree bowed its branches low, still fiercely handsome.  Why had I failed it?
Its flowers waved feeble petals at my thin resolve; its leaves danced as they never had in the late morning.
A fruit sat by my feet when it was finished, a fruit the best of its kinsman - red, moist and bitten.
Each day after, I fixed my gaze out my window and saw its blacked remains crumbling on the earth.