A young gum tree in my street
*
Whose fault is it?
Everything alive is born
Lives for a while
Then dies –
So it is with trees
It’s not the old tree’s fault
A young life is lying half dead
Under its old gnarled branch
It’s not the girl’s fault
She happened to be there
In the school yard
When the old gum tree
Huge – fifty years old
Lost its old brittle branch
It’s not the teacher’s fault
How could she have known
The old gum tree would shed
Its old spent limb
Just after the bell rang for lunch?
The old tree sighs
While the parents’ and children’s cries
Reach as high as the stars
‘It’s not my fault’
The old tree sighs
Whose fault is it then?
‘It’s a freak accident’
Some say
Nay, it’s more than that
The accusing finger points
At those who worship trees
As some worship sacred cows
Humans, come to your senses!
The old gum tree boughs
Are as innocent as the sacred cows
Why don’t you change the laws?
Get on to it quick smart
Then, chop chop!
Chop down the old killer trees
Before another young heart
Is cut in the bud
*
A Girl, 8, is dead and another child and teacher seriously injured after the bough of a gum tree crashed onto them minutes after the bell rang for lunch at a western Sydney school.
The Daily Telegraph – February 21, 2014
This poem was written in response to the prompt by Anita Stewart, editor of Sunday writing Essential on Gather.
The Challenge: Write a story, essay or poem around a theme.
The theme for this poem is: Tragedy as a result of the imbalance between protecting nature and human lives.
*
Some good has come out of this tragedy. Here is what I heard on the radio this morning and then read in The Daily Telegraph:
Death of Bridget Wright, 8, prompts forced inspections of trees on school grounds across the state.
The Daily Telegraph – February 27, 2014
Common sense has prevailed! Three cheers for that!
©2014 irina dimitric
Irina's Poetry Corner 
Hello dear Irina.
Your poem here is really touching .
“Whose fault is it then?/ The old tree sighs”..
It might sound hard to understand or to explain, but it is “our” fault in a general sense, as we are all part of Nature, we are natural creatures, we share the main inner “soul” which is part of the holistic version: Planet Earth, our common background.
I really hope we take much more care of our surroundings.
Thanks for sharing, happy weekend ahead, best wishes;
Aquileana 🙂
Thanks for reading and for your thoughtful comment, Aquileana. Such accidents are rare occasions but even one death is too many if we as rational beings can implement measures to prevent it. Thank God, such measures have now come into force.
Happy weekend to you! Cheers 🙂 Irina
Touching poem Irina
Have a nice weekend !
How tragic. 😦 A good lesson on mankind’s silliness. Thanks for sharing this poem Irina — a really powerful one!
My pleasure, Mockingbird. Glad you like the poem.