Living Tree Poetry

More central than gravity
I pivot on you,
as on the eye of the needle.

More present than air
I walk in you
as the sea surrounding.

My eyes cannot focus
on the things too near,
but you still live here,

just a hair’s breadth away.

And I swing, as the planets
in their circle,
hardly knowing the force that pulls.

But feeling nonetheless,
an inkling,
as breath on skin,

or a cool breeze,
bringing goosebumps
in its wake.

Yes, we each live
more central to you
than we understand.

Like a people
in proximity
to creatures beyond count,

who hardly know they’re not alone.

And on your pivoting
planet,
are courted

by you,
who have burst the seams of intimacy
to touch us from inside out.

Ana Lisa de Jong
Living Tree Poetry
July 2021