Tiger Riding for Beginners

Traveling Poet Philosopher & Occasional Wiseacre

a snake crawls 
 down out of a tree…
  i have questions.

branches twist
 in pretzel-like weaves, 
  stronger for it.

sinuous limbs
 of a sprawling tree look 
  like wriggling squid.

dry and yellow,
 fall leaves hang on like a thick
  head of gray hair.

rain trees
 form a vaulted dome
  over city bustle.

grasses sway,
 the egret stalks, & even
  tree roots seem to crawl.

“turn left to go right”:
 branches sweep around in arcs,
  is the tree moving?

the bushy tree
 in the temple wall isn't so
  claustrophobic as I.

one oak tree
 stands atop the hill:
  unstruck by lightning.

cypress tips
 glow with afternoon sun:
  yellow for a time.