I cover the ground,
I cover the trees,
I snake up walls
and trail down my leaves.
When the year turns, I flower
and produce succulent berries
that hungry animals feast on
until they’re full and merry.
You’ll often find me
in the shadiest of places,
and for this I was once banned
from a range of holy spaces.
They associated me with
the untrustworthy and thieves,
refused to comprehend my emerald lustre
and took me down from the eaves.
But a mighty comeback I have made –
indeed, I’m even celebrated in song!
And regularly pepper festive décor,
remaining bright long after the season is gone.
For my roots, they are many,
and their determination always goes uncontested.
Thus, my previous worth has been reinstated and I symbolise
fidelity, endurance, and everlasting friendship.
This poem is part of a project I’m doing to raise money for the RSPB, a UK wildlife conservation and protection charity. Being autistic, nature is often my only place of solace, and I want to do all I can to protect it. As I’m not very comfortable around other people, most of the standard ways of helping out (volunteering, sport-style fundraisers etc) were not a good fit for me, so I came up with #52weeksofnaturepoetry, where I have to post a nature poem here on this blog each week for an entire year without fail.
If you’d like to help, please share this poem to encourage others to take joy in nature, and if you have the time and means to donate, you can do so here. Let’s help keep our wildlife wild!
Treeshallow Musings 