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Tuesday 31 May 2011

Thoughts from the Forest

Remember 
how as children
                                we played at Indians
went tracking through the woods?
                                Even then
                                we thought them thick with thoughts
                                more crowded than with trees.
They hung like cobwebs from the canopy.

                                       Today the forest is all mind           
                                       the trees are neurons 
          
tread lightly through 
avoid the twig that snaps
                         the leaves that rustle      
                         we
                         are what will pass for inspiration
                         interlopers maybe
                         but a sudden thought the trees have had
                         an uninvited notion
dripping through the leaves
                         a massive firing in the canopy      
where dendrite branches make
                         their billion connections.

Everything that moves is thought
                                was thought an age ago.

Yesterday               tree surgeons           operating in the wood.
Today                   a gaping wound
                        the axons in their barky sheaths
                        had grown diseased.

The forest mind is not disturbed by this
                        as our minds are
                        as we, its inspiration, are.

Just recently
                electric storms
                lightning flashes lit the canopy.
It was as though
                the forest had a seizure
                It must have washed away
                                        a lot of memory.

I'm wondering
             if we survived intact.





14 comments:

Carl said...

wonderful imagery and a great juxtaposition. I'll be back to this one over and over.

Carl said...

Dave - I see you wandered over to Vicki Fatum's blog. She is a wonderful photographer. Her work is really inspirational. I have learned a great deal from seeing such wonderful and elegant compositions. She gave herself the daunting task of shooting everyday for 365 days and blogging the results. I could not have done it.

Gerry Snape said...

...where dendrite branches make their million conections....

quite a line! thankyou for making me think!

Hannah Stephenson said...

"The forest mind" is really staying with me...terrific.

Rose said...

A lovely write. You are an inspiration!

Corinna said...

trees are a favorite of mine and you did them justice in this ode.

jabblog said...

A very thoughtful poem with such interesting analogies.

Linda Sue said...

On my monitor the font is so small that it looks like gnat droppings- , I have to get my lookers to see this poem which I am sure will delight me as usual.

Jenny Woolf said...

Like the comparison. I don't know if you know, but I wrote a biography of Lewis Carroll. In my research I read an account from one of the children he used to tell stories to. She said that the best bit was always when the characters were in a wood. She sensed that there was something special about it and it gave her a strange feeling. I feel you have caught the way that many of us internalise the idea of a forest.

Titus said...

As with the above comments, I love the identification of mind with forest, but the absolute joy of this was the strength of some of the lines. This one;

Everything that moves is thought
was thought an age ago.

is mindblowing by itself!
Really thought-provoking work.

Windsmoke. said...

Another fantastic walk down memory lane of our childhood :-).

Linda said...

Wow, I just read this about three times.....Great poetry..reminds me of when I read "To Kill A Mockingbird" and couldn't put it down....Somehow nature has its way of forgiving us when we disturb it.....I believe through storms , there is a spiritual reincarnation and rebirth...Excellent work Dave..I so enjoyed! Linda

Dave King said...

Carl
Thanks a lot Carl. Good to know you liked it.
As for Vicki's blog, I enjoyed my visit immensely. There is certainly much to be learnt there.

Nilofer
Thanks for the compliment. Will be along.

Gerry
Thanks for the feedback. Always welcome, always useful.

Hannah
Once it's part of you, the forest stays, I find. Thanks for visiting and leaving your comment.

Rose
Thanks for that. Much appreciated.

Corinna
Thanks. Lovely compliment.

jabblog
Your comments are always heartening. Thanks.

Linda Sue
Sorry about that. You might be able to adjust your font size.

Jenny Woolf
Thank you for that. No, I didn't know you had written the biography, but I can relate to the remarks of that child. I also feel there is something very special, and almost "other" about a forest. Yours is a very stimulating comment. Thanks again.

Titus
Your comments are always so gratifying as well as interesting. Your highlighting of lines or phrases that then make themselves more known to me than they were is a great boost. Thank you.

Windsmoke
Indeed, thanks for the comment.

Linda
Now it's my turn to say "wow"! My poem compared to "To Killa Mockingbird"! I'd truly have settled for that! Thank you so much for the comment.

Anonymous said...

Impressions made. Inspiration felt.

Thanks too for your visit, and comment.