the heart of a tree

this day blossomed

like so many others before and afterwards -

thin, cold, and white

under a sky

so tender

so mild

even the birds whispered

in reverent deference

as they crossed it

spellbound

how many birds

held their songs

in their throats

felt the beating

of their hearts in their breasts

as that sky

spread itself

across the earth

perhaps you can imagine

(possibly even feel

in the beating of your own heart)

how when one small bird sang

in a silent and sacred space such as this

the spell was not so much broken

as it was refined

to an almost crystalline essence

*

the bird sang a story

of a tree

that grew long ago

a tree

so tall

so ancient

so magnificent

that in all their experiencing

the birds had never

known such a tree

anywhere

or anytime else

moreover

this was a tree

of such wisdom

and such grace

that one bird in particular

could not bear

to be separated from her

he loved her

*

and so it is

that this story-telling bird

flying alone

across the december sky

caught my attention

as he sang

the story of a bird

who had flown these very skies

so very long ago

a bird

who could not bear to be separated

from the tree to whom he had given his heart

and for those others who slowed

perhaps even stopped

to hear his songstory

this is what they learned

*

it seems that there had indeed once been a magnificent and ancient pine tree

a tree whose arms sheltered all manner of birds and animals

including one small bird who had been born in the tree

and had known the tree as a place of refuge for much of its life

after having lived for countless years

(for as you likely know tree years bear no relation to human years)

this tree had been taken down by a single man

whose axe had been brought forth from its place in a small shed

where it hung from a small leather strap.

its blade had flashed momentarily as the man had brought it into the light of that late summer's day.

it had slashed upwards

and then downwards

until a soft white v with a pale green heart

was exposed.

the man had been instructed to bring down the tree at the request of his wife

who among other extraordinary qualities,

possessed degrees of intuition that he found difficult to ignore or compromise.

it was his work to render the tree's body into useable portions in preparation for a winter that was

(as her intuitions had suggested)

so deep that few have forgotten its harsh and unremitting culling of man and animal alike.

as the notch in the tree's body became more pronounced

the man stopped for a moment

for between the splintering strokes of his axe

he could hear a bird

singing

and as he looked up to see the bird

a single pinecone fell to the ground

from the very tree whose life he was ending

the cone fell into the centre of a small patch of wildflowers

some of whom bent very slightly

the better to see the newcomer

the cone lay very still of course

the bird stopped its singing

the man stood with his axe at his side

all the forest was waiting

he heard the rustling of late summer leaves

felt a small breeze cross his face

watched

as the wildflowers slowly returned to their upright position

then he wiped his brow

hoisted his axe

and swung it three more times

into the body of the tree

as the axe bit into the wood for the third time

the tree shuddered

almost imperceptably

but the man

who was sensitive to such things

moved backwards

and watched as the tree

with a soft groan

fell to the ground

in the instant

that the tree

was released

from its earthly constraints

the bird flew skywards

hovering

a tiny brown speck

against a watery blue sky

the man rendered the tree into smaller pieces

and dragged them one-by-one to his home

where his wife stood watching from the cabin door

when the last of the wood

had been taken away

the bird descended from its place in the sky

and landed

amongst the tiny patch of wildflowers

where the pinecone had fallen

it had settled in underneath some leaves

and was slowly but surely being

drawn into the earth

the bird

moved until it was sitting over the pinecone

so as to protect its tiny body

from squirrels and larger animals,

the first frosts

and eventually

the snow and the ice

in so doing

the bird gave away its connection to this place

and eventually

as is the way with all living things

its body also

returned to the earth

over time

as the pinecone

entered the earth

it opened its body

releasing a trembling finger of pale green

that drew sun and water and air

into itself

and as the little green finger thickened

and grew into a tall and loving tree

it wrapped itself around the bird

enveloping it

such that the tree and the bird

were as one

for the heart of the tree

and the heart of the bird

were one

*

this is a song

that the birds sing

to remind us

of the great and unconditional care

that exists in the world and between all things

*

since that time

the tree that grew from the pinecone

so carefully nurtured and loved by the little bird

has had many descendants

look carefully

for some carry inside their hearts

the image

of the bird

happy christmas from steven

and everyone at the golden fish world headquarters!