by Robert Okaji
It is enough
that the tornado
left one tree
amidst the rubble,
stripped of its leaves
yet standing tall,
almost elegant
in its naked pose,
but strong,
purposeful
in the stillness
of after.
Photo by Alex Belogub on Unsplash
In the Stillness of After
About the Author
Robert Okaji lives in Indiana. His work has appeared in Threepenny Review, Book of Matches, Vox Populi, Evergreen Review and other venues.
…A poem perfect in it’s simplicity. I can imagine & also relate to that tree. I am reminded of times I have stood tall through storms, amongst rubble. Once I did a charcoal drawing for an art class of a lone flower, growing through a tiny crack on a busy Seattle sidewalk. I was not only struck by it’s beauty, surrounded by dirt & grim, but by it’s survival against all odds. Beautiful poem…
He has not given up