Poet’s Showcase
"Catalpa" by Jill Jevens
Catalpa
By Jill Jevens
Even with Fall’s bright colors all around,
I notice you,
as I have, everyday
since planting your slim seedling
in a spring breeze.
There are those who asked questions.
Why that kind?
You would grow fast, I said.
I wanted shade.
I didn’t know then
that time would speed up, too.
You were there the day
I brought my baby home.
You’ve seen one dog run away,
play fetch, die.
I’ve watched you bloom
each spring
and elegantly bend in
the worst Kansas storms
Sometimes it’s hard to look at you
and know that time is passing.
Yet, like your branches,
my child’s arms and legs grow longer.
He climbs you now,
hiding in your big leaves.
You and I, we’re both a little messy,
we both change, and show off a bit.
Yet, when I tell myself
it’s only been a few years,
you show that you are the wise one,
a tall, gentle harbinger,
swaying softly, shedding your pale leaves.