The evil we do

Photo by Steven Wallace

Bare and naked it stands
brown, brittle bark
barren, leafless branches
your toxicity torched it
once vivacious now vanquished
once stately now withered
it waits forlornly to be axed
I feel guilty when I look at it
for I killed it too; unintentionally.
yet, I feel like a murderer
no different than you

No, I did not immerse your ashes as is the custom
I did not want to pollute the holy waters
I did not scatter your ashes on the ground
the thought of the earth being blighted
smote my heart
I did not disperse your ashes in the air
how could I sully further the already sullied
I thought I was being wise
when I buried your ashes deep
under the ground in a cemetery
but your venom seeped into the soil
this tree, a dying declaration
that evil cannot be interred with bones.

Written for David’s W3 and Eugi’s moonwashed weekly challange.