Everywhere The Evergreens

In timeless valleys carved by glaciers past,
Grey weather travels from the sea
Condensing into rain. The ever changing mist
Becomes a fair community.

There live in stable numbers, wandering grace,
The herds of elk in worlds of standing cedar.
Their browsings clear the way for open space
Among the hemlock, spruce and fir.

Both high and deep within the canopy,
Inside innumerable needles hide
Bacteria, in friendship with the trees,
That bring a fresh insecticide.

On branches in a lasting partnership
Live lichen steeped with nutrients
From wind and rain. And in the mossy grip,
Lie hidden roots to gather from the rich demesne.

The lichen capture soil on the air,
And seedlings then are grown and tossed
Upon the wind. As acrobats they dare
To live, until with time and fate are lost.

The winds throw mosses down
Upon a busy forest floor,
And fungi well beneath the ground,
With tree roots there who live and share.

As truffles now release the earthy call
To mice and squirrels upon the breeze,
Their quiet dining by the pillared hall
At once replace the fungi in the trees.

Relationships complex, cooperative, many tiered,
Of squirrel and truffle, salmon, moss and lichen,
When preyed upon by owl and bear and puma feared,
New lives in cycles all awaken.

The heavy, emerald, shining stole
Of moss and shrub, vine maple, fern and woody giants lain,
As well the eagle, deer and vole reflect the worth,
The steady never ending drumming of the rain,
Refreshing bole and branch and countless souls.
The heart and breath and spirit of the earth.