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I have a deep connection to trees, and I was thinking about trees lining a path, after seeing a photograph posted by fellow LYS contributor, Raquel. I wanted to know which trees lined the Trail of Tears, specifically, and greeted the Natives that walked those many miles. Interestingly, there are numerous trees that are bent oddly, have grown together in unique ways, or form shapes that are not commonly seen, including benches where trunks have split into an extended Y shape, or where a single tree created a little seating area where the tree has grown downward and then back up in a normal fashion. Most of the research supports the belief that the Native tribes of the different areas, along The Trail, manipulated these trees, years prior, in order to create markers of various kinds to help hunters\/gatherers, etc\u2026 I, however, decided to use the idea that the trees themselves, being sentient entities, saw a need, and wanted to help those in peril, even if it was for a brief period of time. My three times great grandfather was 7-8 years old when he walked the Trail of Tears with his family. He lost loved ones along the way. I wanted to write this from his perspective. This is for you, Ezekial (Zeke) Proctor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Crisp air hits his youthful pink lungs
his nervous energy
doesn\u2019t let them fully inflate.
No time to gather favorite things
fear is clouding the air.
He counts the passing lofty pines
his mind travels away
to protect his eyes from their view.
Slowly does his family move
he steps softly into their wakes.
A Trail Tree soothes his weary soul
It points the way safely
or so he convinces himself.
It could be a marker
of a heavier toll she bears.
For his eight years he\u2019s known these trees.
Their new lamentation
is a foreign tongue to his ears.
Grieving for human friends
Snowy flowers are loosed to mourn.
Cottonwoods stretch to protect him
He feels their limbs take hold
he smiles once thanks to their comfort
he can\u2019t escape their gaze.
The soldiers urge them to press on.
\u2018Farewell shoes\u2019 he whispers through sighs
and limps along The Trail.
The trees still lead but they are bare
icy snow numbs his feet,
his soul shudders with too much toil.
\u2018Oklahoma\u2019 the Sergeant states
\u2018a new home you will have\u2019.
It matters not what he wishes
even needs are of no import.
The trees begin to change their shape
and try their best to soothe.
Pinyons let loose along the path
provide a snack this day.
He now hears the hum of thousands
no songs of greetings though.
Fond farewell to his Trail of Trees.
7.11.20
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