The Trees of Surprise Edited by Marjorie Norris Book Preview

7/31/2019 The Trees of Surprise Edited by Marjorie Norris Book Preview

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The Trees of Surprise by Marjorie Norris

Copyright 2007

Published by BlazeVOX [books]

All rights reserved. All rights return to authors upon publication. No part

of this book may be reproduced without the publishers written permission,except for brief quotations in reviews.

Printed in the United States of America

Book design by Geoffrey Gatza

First Edition

ISBN: 1-934289-6 ISBN 13: 978-1-934289-66-2Library of Congress Control Number: 2007931778Cover Art Priscilla Bowen, Unexpected"

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Kenmore, NY 14217

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Table of Contents

Table of Contents _____________________________________________________3

Dedication____________________________________________________________ 7

Introduction __________________________________________________________ 9

October 13, 2006 _____________________________________________________13

red bud _____________________________________________________________ 14

Smallest Tree, Largest Love ___________________________________________ 15

Dance for the Trees___________________________________________________ 16

October Surprise _____________________________________________________ 17

Haiku _______________________________________________________________ 18

March Willows _______________________________________________________ 19

Nests________________________________________________________________ 20

Our City Trees _______________________________________________________ 21

Loblolly Pine ________________________________________________________ 22

The Shadow at the Core_______________________________________________ 23

Lilac Tree ___________________________________________________________25

My Yggdrasil _________________________________________________________ 26

The October Day _____________________________________________________ 28

Visualize_____________________________________________________________ 29

Lights Out___________________________________________________________ 30

Going _______________________________________________________________ 31

The Crown __________________________________________________________ 32

Into the Perfect Air of October _________________________________________ 33

Autumnal Virgin Storm _______________________________________________ 34

Sunshine ____________________________________________________________35


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Crazy in October _____________________________________________________ 36

They are All Willows _________________________________________________ 37

A Winter Afternoon, and Everyone Sighing _____________________________ 38

For Leslie ___________________________________________________________ 39

Tumbling ___________________________________________________________ 41

Locust ______________________________________________________________ 43

Bliss ________________________________________________________________ 44

Forest Lawn Fall Morning_____________________________________________ 46

Remains of winter ____________________________________________________ 47

Falling Trees_______________________________________________________ 48

Trees _______________________________________________________________ 50

Trees _______________________________________________________________ 51

Trees _______________________________________________________________ 52

October Storm Surprise ______________________________________________ 53

No More Pears _______________________________________________________ 54

In Recognition and Reverence _________________________________________ 55

Bees ________________________________________________________________ 56

Waiting _____________________________________________________________ 57

Poplars _____________________________________________________________ 58

Trees _______________________________________________________________ 59

A Sudden Loss ______________________________________________________ 60

The Trees of Fall_____________________________________________________ 61

Rememberings_______________________________________________________ 62

The Coat Tree _______________________________________________________ 63

Tree of Life__________________________________________________________ 64

Comrades in Arms ___________________________________________________ 65

City of Trees_________________________________________________________ 67

A Cry for the Trees ___________________________________________________ 69


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October trees ________________________________________________________ 71

The Whipping Tree___________________________________________________ 73

Trees________________________________________________________________ 74

Gods Creation _______________________________________________________ 75

TREES USED TO SPEAK TO ME MORE THAN THEY DO NOW________ 76

Prescription: A Fall Road Trip for the End of a Love Affair _______________ 77

Touching Cedars _____________________________________________________79

Leaves ______________________________________________________________ 80

Two Trees ___________________________________________________________81

Sally Johnsons Apple Tree ____________________________________________ 83

The Trees ___________________________________________________________84

The Progenitor_______________________________________________________ 85

From My Window ____________________________________________________86

Dancers and Saints ___________________________________________________ 87

Blossom Anyway _____________________________________________________88

Listening ____________________________________________________________89

Healing the Wound___________________________________________________ 90

To a Dry Elm ________________________________________________________ 91

A Broken Branch _____________________________________________________ 92

Not the Same Hereafter _______________________________________________93

The Snow is Falling __________________________________________________ 95

My Blueberry Tree ______________________________________________________ 96


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Dedication

And the wind said:May you be as strong as the oak,yet flexible as the Birch,may you stand tall as the Redwood,live gracefully as the Willow,and may peace and prosperity

surround you all of your days.

Tree of Life Inspirationswww.treeol.com

Id like to thank Anne Ritenour for her original view of this book and help at its

start, also Liz Walczak for her gracious response to written contributions andphotographs, to Tim Maggio and Kathy Mecca as well as my children Marie Norris-

Baxter and Mark Norris and Marks wife, Michelle Norris, for being there to support

the communitys Karpeles Museum event on October 13, 2007, the first anniversary

of the Trees of October Surprise. Much appreciation for the remarkable talent of

Priscilla Bowen, whose paintings grace the cover and inside of this anthology and

Linda Lavid, for her part in cover design. Gratitude to Talia Roth for herremarkable photograph on the back. Much thanks to Just Buffalo Literary Center,

Arts Council in Buffalo and Erie County, Buffalo News and Artvoice, local radio and

TV stations, Talking Leaves and Barnes and Noble as well as amazon.com for getting

the word out. And thank you, all, contributors throughout Western New York andother climes, you know who you are, and all you mean to me. May we be

strengthened in our loss of the trees and our appreciation for them, wise ancestors

all.

Marjorie Norris, editor, Trees of Surprise*Author of Two Suns, Two Moons, Aventine Press, 2005*

Resilience, Aventine Press 2007*

*All available at Talking Leaves Bookstore, Buffalo, New York or amazon.com


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Introduction

I want to thank all the Western New Yorkers who have presented

their wonderful writing, art and photographs to create this anthology.These words celebrate our lost trees and remember the trees that have

meant so much to us in our childhoods and beyond.

It seems trees hold our strength for us, some of our internalworld, as well as the outer. They are great archetypes. Trees areloved, painted, photographed, sat and made love under, climbedin, and hugged. Trees are, as humans can be, large and lofty. Andbabies, in their buggies, stare up and out into the wide sky throughthe kaleidoscopic canopies of their leaves.

Many spring days, strolling around the periphery of the golf course atDelaware Park, I have walked so enjoyably and long as to find theMarch trees seeming to walk toward me, rather than I toward them.Of course, this is an optical illusion, as when the Niagara River seems

still and I, the watcher, seem to be moving South just looking at it.These are the wonders of our earth and water, our steadfast rootsand images. We have lost so much of them, yet nature has provided

more.

May it always be this way.

Marjorie Norris, Editor

Trees of Surprise will be available for sale at the first anniversary celebrationand book signing Saturday, October 13, 2007 at Karpeles Museum, 453 Porter Avenue,

Buffalo, New York 14201. The time is 4 pm to 6 pm. Each one of our contributors willreceive a complimentary copy for their writing or photos, and others will be available for

sale at a nominal price. Remember, they make great holiday gifts!


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Trees of Surprise

One of the Many Fine Times

Priscilla Bowen


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October 13, 2006

It was so beautiful the morning of the storm. I proudlypointed out to a visitor that the broad-armed maple on our front

lawn was at the height of its color. He agreed, it was an

exquisite sight. Later in the day I stood on the porch watching

the rain coat the grass and leaves, and was delighted by the

reds and oranges and sunny yellows glazed by a thin, clear filmof ice. It was a shimmering fairy world.

Then I heard the first crack. Startling, loud. It came from the

next block. And then another crack. This one seemed to comefrom just down the street. Soon another and another until I was

afraid the neighborhood was falling apart. The splintering noise

alarmed me and I hid inside.All evening and night and into the next day, sounds like a

bullwhip on bare flesh, over and over again. From the window

I watched the arch of trees above the street fall in on itself. And

our lovely maple, limb after limb, arms breaking off at the shoulders,

its decades of nurtured symmetry interrupted by the sudden exposure

of harsh, black, anorexic elbows pointing to the sky.It was dreadful and frightening. Helpless tears wet my cheeks.

From enchantment to grief in such a short time.

Madeline DavisWilliamsville, New York


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red bud

she stood near our front doorwhere she housed the finches

and welcomed the paper boy

late afternoons when neighbors dropped by

she looked fragile and shy unlike the oaks and elms

around the yards perimeterbut strong nonetheless

she outlived by years

dire warnings of landscape professionalswho saw her as half-dead

her arms stretched across the front yardwhen her tiny blossoms burst through their shells

each May we were startled into spring

then lulled through summers heat

with her cooling shade

even in winter the twinkling lights

wrapped around her branches kept our spirits high

it will be hard now

to mark the seasonswithout her

hard to recognize soft changes

without this friend

Margaret CusackWilliamsville, NY


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Smallest Tree, Largest Love

In the garden, shaped like a pentagon,The two foot tree stands half-fallen,

She shows no fear,

Her bark is gray and frail

She breathes small breaths with hesitation

But shows no blossomShe stares into the sun

If she fails, shell rest in peace

Knowing she was ours

Chelsea BlackmanAge: 11, Clarence, NYStudent of Margaret Cusack, Ledgeview Elementary School


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Dance for the Trees(for Stan)

Tree- half blooming with bursting, luxuriating pink blossoms

- half dead from the stormLeaning my head and belly into herWhat do you feel I ask

It was a shift for usA chance to move into new forms

You have been through such a shift

Our dead limbs mean as much to us as your old baggage to you

Our life force moves into new paths, the living limbs

We know new vitality, new eddies of energy

She pulls me to her blooming side

So that I can feel it in my body

Anne Marie WorthyBuffalo, New York


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October Surprise

In that melancholy time of late afternoonThe snow begins

Falls through the stained glass colors

Of October leaves

Floats slowly down like quiet dreams

Builds in drifts along the branchesPiles around thick trunks

Weighs down the brilliant leaves

Deeper and deeperThrough the night the darkness fills with

Staccato cracks and crashes,

Snow thunder and windFinally silence returns and

In a stark morning light the trees stand crippled

With broken leafless branches and

Shattered bodies remnants

Of their once strong and beautiful selves

Wood still alive withYears of struggle and growth

They seem surprised themselves andTheir surprise echoes our own

At the shock and grief we feel

Surprise at our sense of shared pain and loss

Surprise at our new sense of

Their importance in our lives

Sally JohnsonGasport, New York


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Haiku

Crimson, bronze, gold fireIn snow they fall like ashes

New life for tired earth

Sally JohnsonGasport, NY


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March Willows

A white cold windWhips around the trees

Forces evenstay-all-winter geeseTo hide huddled under the canal bridge

Against a pewter sky willow branches

Catch and hold a few scattered glimpses of

Pale sun

Ice-tipped and brittle brown buds

Swell under a colorless frosty glaze

Lustrous yellow stems waveIn frantic spiral patterns

Everyone else has given upThe summer garden lays lifeless

Wild raspberries and bare shrubs bend low

Under still deep snowSmall creatures in

Tiny winter homes

Sleep on and onBut the willow trees know its March

The willow trees believe in Spring

Sally JohnsonGasport, NY


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Nests

They are webbed firmly into the crookOf branches tested by winds and snow---

By storms blowing in fast from the lake

To crash scree against the shore.

Branches crack and sliver off

But still the abandoned nests hold--Those dried twigs strapped together

Weaved as monuments

To families grown and gone:Yet they still wait.

Linda DrajemBuffalo, NY


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Our City Trees

Clipped and shaved headsTortured by storm and by neglect

They wave black arms in snow-laden streets

With raw wounds of sawed branches.

Bony limbs left to rot

Turn inward to meditate on lossAnd if blame, then that too.

Like our city they were abandoned

To send out wild leaves each springIn streams of air exhaled from factories

Trying to keep a city alive,

The rush of tramping feetBleeds energy that has weaned us

From savoring those bowers

Those umbrella shoulders that shelter

And keep strong hope.

Now the cracked and crazed trees tell our story.

Linda DrajemBuffalo, New York


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Loblolly Pine

A name derived from moist depressionsAlso thick gruel or muddy mire

Now favors bottomlands in the South

Grows dense and tall near the Gulf

But dreams of sisters up North

Frozen pine and spruceBurdened with snow and weak roots

Squared jaw against the blizzard

Eager to hold but wind-tossed

No lob lollyingin this climate

No relaxing by a golf courseOr serenading a constant sunTo whistle in gentle breezes

Accompanied by a cicada orchestra

These sisters and brothers tooStand tall away from depressions

Stand firm and only lollygag

When spring arrives to hint of southern air

Linda DrajemBuffalo, New York


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The Shadow at the Core

The apples were green,Too tart and small to eat,

But Grandma lapped them

In her bib apron and

Made sweet, juicy strudels.

This was her humble tree,Not the kind to entice Snow White

Or harbor serpents.

That is why the

Man in the Brown Hat

Startled us,Showing up so brazenly

One Tuesday night

Under Grandmas apple tree.

His long shadow

Crept toward our windowAs if knowing Mom was out

Bowling at Lucky Strike Lanes,

As if seeing Dad with hisWrinkled brown bag

Leave for the graveyard shift

At Bethlehem.

Yes, while lights flickered

Black and white inside andOur little heads whirled with

Tales from Alcoa Presents,

The Man in the Brown HatBroke into Grandmas tree

And stood his ground.


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What a long night it was,

Left as we were in

P.J.s, our only armor.Nowhere to hide,

No fairy godmother to

Stop the invaderAnd, in hindsight,

Nothing did stop the siege.

Though summers of apples

Continued tumbling onto

Doughy laps,The tree itself never did grow taller,

While the silhouette of theMan in the Brown HatSeemed to swell, spilling

Over picnics and

Puddles of apples,

Now turning brown,

Under Grandmas Apple Tree.

Carol PasiecznikBuffalo, New York


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Lilac Tree

Is that snow, love, clinging to the limbs of the tree, orwarm sleeves of light instead? Quavering, uncertain

she spoke. Their love, intently studied under the microscope,

is cracked and its patina is worn thin.

Surprisingly, snow fell in October this year.Trunks split from the weight and

Branches hang like impotent members

Of an arboreal army.

Daily, as the sun pushed the horizon away

Like an unwelcome guest,Another Woman snuck quietly into their home.

Always the Gentleman, He held the door open for Her.

Legs splayed like broken limbs

They tainted history on the living room floor.

Now alone, she sits in her home.Gazing out at the soft,

Budding potential of her cherished lilac tree.

Wavering sleeves of light diffract throughThe bubbled glass and feel warm on her face.

AnonymousBuffalo, NY


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My Yggdrasil

You reach into the world

From the place I set you to earth,

A twig that shouldnt have lasted a winter,

Now scraping the bottoms of clouds,

Rooted below the world,Deeper than Ive grown,

And towering above me, ages old.

How can that be? I planted you

In my lifetime,

Liar!

Are you myaxis mundi,Grown beyond expectation?

And I, who stand at your base,Am I so much older

Than the child who planted you,

Climbed you before your time?

How long ago

Did I set dry twig to earth?Am I ancient now?

Youve outgrown my reach

In brief decades, left me on earthWhile you ascended the sky.

Wholl climb you now?

Go back and be a twig again;

Grow when it suits you.

Ill be waiting to climb youWhen youre ready. I wont be

Too old by then,


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Yggdrasil,World Tree,

Liar!

David Park MusellaAmherst, New York

Center for Inquirys coordinatorLiterary events, first Wednesday of month

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The Trees of Surprise Edited by Marjorie Norris Book Preview