I think of myself as gnarled
With a wonderful twist
I’m attractive,
In mist
Part of the pack, yet
apart, at the back
I’m not trying to hide:
I’m in front, from the side
With light in my leaf and
bone in my bark:
It’s in swaying and shadows
that I make my mark
I sense that I’m old and
I know that I’ll stay
And I think that I’ll thrive
until the day when
I fall in a gale
on a wild winter’s night
In the spring there’s a gap
To let in the light
Find your gap
Take your place
Dance your life
Never race
And know that the world
Has been lit
By your grace
Copyright Chris Nichols 2003
The Gaunts’ House Tree
Read to mark the planting of the Ashridge Consulting Holm Oak at
Ashridge: May 13 2013