Living Tree Poetry

The skin is just a covering for the bones,
so the flesh would have an encasement.

So that we can stand and move, and
have the body do our will.

But why, why so beautiful?

The skin is just a fabric of soft silk
stretched over hills and hollows.

It is just a ream of cloth, bolt of cotton
that has been put to purpose.

But why, why so beautiful

in the folds,
the hang of drapery,

the moulding to curves,
the falling down inclines.

The skin is just a covering for the bones,
the blood and organs.

That we can function as living beings
with lungs and breath,

hearts and sense.

So that we can put our bodies to use.

But why the endings at our nerves,
the way our senses stand on edge.

And the way we move,
feel against each other’s surfaces,

why, why
so beautiful?

Ana Lisa de Jong
Living Tree Poetry
December 2020