The Giving Tree
When I was four
I heard big rumbles
I heard the Earth cracking
And trees snapping
I saw streaks of white
Flash across the sky.
On this day my mother told me about thunderstorms.
She explained when clouds are sad
They cry big crocodile tears
She explained when they are mad
They strike each other with bolts of lightning
Made special with love from the hands of Zeus
On Mount Olympus.
I didn’t want to forget.
And so I wrote
With my backwards S’s
And my Cheeto cheese powder covered hands
And my pink and green crayons
I wrote to remember.
When I was five
I tripped while running
I came inside crying my eyes out
And a little blood on my knee.
So my mother told me the story of a boy
And a tree who spoke soft, kind words
And gave the boy everything it had.
I wrote a letter to a tree
In my backyard
I told him he shouldn’t be shy
I was his friend.
I wrote to get friends.
When I was six
I broke my mother’s flower vase
I got out Elmer’s school glue
And began to put the pieces back
Only they wouldn’t fit.
I searched the couch cushions for pennies
And my dad’s wallet for dimes
And my birthday money for nickels.
I walked out the door with my forty-three cents
Only I lived in the middle of nowhere.
I took my favorite stuffed dog, Ruby
And waited for any passer byers to buy this steal.
Only, no one wanted Ruby.
So I wrote.
I wrote how sorry I was
And how I was a bad daughter
And she could have my forty-three cents
And she could have Ruby.
I wrote to apologize.
When I was nine
I wrote to Santa.
I told him I wanted
Moon shoes so I could jump to the moon
And ask the aliens if they wanted Earth shoes.
I asked for a puppy
So he could go to the bathroom with me
And I could go to the bathroom with him.
I asked for my new sister to like me.
I wrote because I wanted.
When I was fourteen
I tweeted about
“How my mom just doesn’t understand”
And how “annoying” my sister is
And “if Mr. Smith gives us one more test I’ll drop out”
I wrote to complain.
When I was seventeen
I wrote to colleges.
I wrote about why I was better than the girl next to me
I wrote about how I have outstanding test scores
And joined SADD
But was never against destructive decisions
Because I was always trying to forget about the new test
Or my college major
Or where I am going to get 25,000 dollars from
While trying to get the most from my education.
When I was seventeen
I took Algebra II
And while the teacher discussed polynomial factoring
I was off.
I wrote about why I loved the ocean more than anything
I wrote about why I will always be a vegetarian
I wrote about why the boy next to me is always falling asleep and will never look me in the eye
I wrote about why people berate me with harsh words when I don’t seat them fast enough.
I write to remember stories about sad thunderstorms
I write to tell my mother how sorry I am
I write because of Shel Silverstein and the Giving Tree
I write to impress colleges
I write because math never made sense to me
I write because it’s the only thing I have ever known
And it is the only thing that makes sense.