Poem: Heritage of Trees by David Horsburgh
I saw a man
Attack a tree today
About twenty miles along it
There you'll see a tragic sight.
A line of noble trees
Mutilated; branches ripped
Untimely from their trunks,
The trunks themselves
Wounded, lacerated
Some live attenuated
Cripples; some
Have died.
Their sides
Browned by the sun
Their scabs and scars
Defy repair.
Those noble trees
Planted long since
By some sweet hand,
Sher Shah or unknown,
Or royal patronage.
Let them come now from some
More peaceful shade
To look once more
On their life’s work.
Trees for the people?
Let all enjoy them
Hack them cut them up
So that the fires
That cook the village food
Shall burn more hot.
Trees are our heritage
And ash so holy.
Poem: Heritage of Trees by David Horsburgh
Stanza 1
I saw a man
Attack a tree today
About twenty miles along it
There you'll see a tragic sight.
A line of noble trees
Mutilated; branches ripped
Untimely from their trunks,
The trunks themselves
Wounded, lacerated
Some live attenuated
Cripples; some
Have died.
Paraphrase:
I saw a man
Damaging a tree today.
About twenty miles from here,
You will find a heartbreaking sight.
A row of noble trees
Badly damaged, with branches
Broken too soon from their trunks.
The trunks themselves
Are wounded and deeply scarred.
Some still survive as
Weak and crippled trees; others
Have already died.
Stanza 2
Their sides
Browned by the sun
Their scabs and scars
Defy repair.
Those noble trees
Planted long since
By some sweet hand,
Sher Shah or unknown,
Or royal patronage.
Let them come now from some
More peaceful shade
To look once more
On their life's work.
Paraphrase:
Their sides
Have turned brown in the sun.
Their wounds and scars
Cannot be healed.
Those noble trees
Were planted long ago
By caring hands,
Perhaps by Sher Shah or someone unknown,
Or through the care of a royal patron.
If they could return now
From a peaceful place,
They would once again
See the work they had created.
Stanza 3
Trees for the people?
Let all enjoy them
Hack them cut them up
So that the fires
That cook the village food
Shall burn more hot.
Trees are our heritage
And ash so holy.
Paraphrase:
Trees are meant for everyone.
So people make use of them.
They chop and cut them down
So the fires
That cook the villagers' meals
Can burn more strongly.
Yet these trees
Are our precious and sacred heritage.
Summary
The poem describes how people carelessly damage and cut down
trees. The poet feels sad because these trees were planted long
ago by kind people and are an important part of our heritage. He
reminds us that we should protect and value trees instead of
destroying them.
Theme
The poem highlights the harmful effects of destroying trees and
stresses the importance of protecting nature. It teaches us to
respect trees because they are a valuable part of our heritage
and are essential for life.
Central Idea
Trees are a valuable gift from the past. We should respect,
preserve, and protect them instead of destroying them.
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