Fallen

I have been lying here
while many snows have
come and gone.
My skin has pulled away
and now becomes
a part of the Earth.

I stood many years
on this hill,
Looking over the lake
and shadowing the undergrowth
that soon grew to replace me.

I was young once;
A sapling who worked so hard
to survive.
The winters were harsh.
And the summers...
often far too dry.
But I strengthened out of determination.
And I grew old.
Now, here I lie.

Hikers step over me as if...
I never existed; as if...
I was never majestic.
They don't stop to ponder
the piece of God's plan
that put me here,
and that I continue
to be a part of.

I fertilize the Earth
so that my children
and their children
may carry on
as magnificently as our forefathers.
Even now, my roots are deep.
Even now, my body brings forth new life
in different forms...

And I have no regrets.
Mine was a very good life.