The poem describes the life cycle of a tall tree that provides shade and fruit to visitors over many years until one day its branches crack, fruit rots, and roots tear, causing the trunk to drop to the ground, returning its life to the elements. Throughout its life the tree withstands weather and provides for other living things like birds, bats, insects, and mankind, playing its role in the natural cycle of life on earth.

1. Tree by Kemala
A tall tree in a field
With leaves, flowers and fruits,
Hidden roots holding it high,
Fed by water and minerals.
Visited by birds, bats insects and mankind,
Yielding the delight of its ripe fruits
To pilgrim visitors seeking shade,
A brief sleep and strength of body.
Sometimes a hungry wolf lay in wait
For a passing lamb, or a goat,
Devouring the soft flesh
To live a litte longer
On God’s good earth.
The tree passed many tests and trials
Stood firm
Againts gentle breezes and raging hurricanes
Rising tides and fierce floofs,
Tall and straight.
One day the branches broke, twigs cracked,
The friut rotted and fell,
The roots tore
And the trunk dropped to the ground.
The tree returned its life
The four, transitory, elements,
To the source of life.
Only one
Lives and never dies-
You!

2. Positive connotations Negative connotations
o A tall tree o Hungry wolf
o Yielding the delight o Devouring the soft flesh
o Brief sleep o Raging hurricanes
o Stood firm o Fierce floods
o Strength of body o Branches broke
o Tree passed o Twigs cracked
o Tree returned o Fruit rotted and fell
o The source of life o Dropped to the ground
o Hidden roots
Themes
o Fate of nature
o Living creatures depend on one another to
survive

3. Group members