my happiness is brought by

the swinging branches of the mango trees

in puerto rico, in the caribbean, in me

from these trees i am born

from these trees my roots spring out

like wooden veins that cling to the ground

sending my core deep into the earth

the hum of the butterfly embraces me

like a lullaby putting me to sleep

rocking me and rocking me

until my branches have lowered to the ground

skinny trees like me

don’t make it in concrete jungles out there

skinny trees like me

can barely hold up themselves in the rainforests

skinny trees like me

like the ones that grew from concrete

fall and weep and are forgotten

like debris in the wind

skinny trees like me

are not very useful for much

they are not very pretty to look at

not very easy to climb

but very easy to cut down

and so that’s what they do to

skinny trees like me

but mother nature taught me how to grow from concrete

skinny trees like me

are called weak-minded

but those skinny trees, those skinny trees

have roots that spring out across the field

clinging to the earth like wooden veins

their branches wavering, but never swooping

leaves falling, and flowers blossoming

the hum of the butterfly has never been louder

strong, resilient, flourishing

that is a skinny tree

a skinny tree like me