This Tree

An ode to a tree
So cliche and pathetic
and
Genuinely expressed

Hoisting ourselves
Into the branches
Defacing lovers' names
Smearing mud across their
Jaggedly carved letters

Later I carved my lover's name
Into my skin
To know what it was like
To be a tree

I am this tree
So cliche and pathetic
and
Genuinely expressed

Climbed
Defaced
Carved into
Ignored by
Insolent passersby
Revered and embraced by
Children and artists
Keeper of dreams
Silent witness to violence
Monument of memories
Ladder to the heavens

You are this tree
So cliche and pathetic
and
Genuinely expressed