It comes down to trees
because soil and weather
will always keep growing them,
except for that one,
killed for my paper coffee cup
and its message "made from."
I should ask the forest,
who is ready to go,
weary of all those seasons?
Are you tired of your bark,
the sap flowing more slowly
in its capillary channels?
Has it been one leaf
too many, fruit wasted
on rodents not descendants?
We cannot so converse
or see a need for permission -
our fault, always renewable.
Michael Penny was born in Australia, but now lives in Canada. He has published five books and in numerous literary journals. Once upon a time, he was a lawyer.