Ring of Nourished

I float on the nostalgic drift of autumn clouds  Breathe azul skies freed by yesterdays rain  Pause to tuck falling acorns into dampened soil Last year a giant was lost  Rugged ridged bark my arms unable to circumference  A knobby kneed child once skipped and ran under her canopy  Joyed by her existence  So I mourned when I found her fallen  Rested my hands on the heart of her trunk  Felt my head fall  Felt the heaviness  Wondered if the illegally widened easement road that then butted up to her base hastened her demise  Crews were sent in  People who didn’t know her  Didn't respect her  Angry saws spurring dust into the air  Dividing her into multiple pieces  Trampling some of her young  My palms once again rested on her  For years her leaves and all the good fungal microbes on them enriched the soil under her canopy  Her branches protected her young from extreme heat and wind  They grew stronger, taller  A sheltered and nourished ring of her offspring encircled her base  With established roots growth quickened in new found sunlight  As I tuck more acorns underground  I find solace  For I am a product of a giant  
I grew in her ring of nourished 
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Valley Oak of Malibu Creek State Park, Ca