A Stoem by Mesha Allen
“Somebody told me it’s the end of the world and that’s just for some,
peace to the dead,
strength to the chosen…
Quicksand millennium,
quicksand millennium…”
Like The Roots, I rose From the Ground Up;
my branches spreading wide and bark growing thick.
My leaves grow healthy and the chlorophyll in them
becomes a rich dark green.
I think I will remain a sturdy foundation for the rest of my days.
Slowly I begin to absorb the elements around me,
But the water has been tainted with blood,
The air reeks of the stench of destruction,
And the earth is compacted with the rotting bark of the other trees.
Quicksand replaces the healthy brown soil that once
gave me life.
I slowly start to sink as I see my fellow trees
being savagely cut down …
all because they were in the way.
Some were cut because they began to grow tall and large
and posed a threat to those who were born small and weak,
And the others were dismembered, all of the branches gone,
to leave them disabled and reliant of assistance to simply
survive.
These trees provide oxygen to this precious earth,
yet the loggers would rather destroy them and keep them
oppressed.
They know the trees were on this earth hundreds and thousands of years before them,
but they feel they should be destroyed.
The trees harness too much power for the loggers,
but the loggers start to realize
the trees could be used for their benefit.
They cut them down and ship them to their lumber yard
so they can be set on fire
and provide the loggers with heat.
Some of the trees remain in the yard and become tools for the loggers.
The remaining trees get tossed into a cage, where they will remain for the rest of their lives
because these trees rebelled.
They did not want to stay in the lumber yard.
They witnessed the atrocities the loggers committed,
and wondered why they weren’t being locked inside the cages,
knowing that they committed the highest amount of crime any of the trees have seen.
But then, there were other trees,
Other trees adapted to the world and torturous nature of the loggers.
They worked for the loggers as the more useful tools.
They provided the most benefit to the loggers.
They often turned their backs on the other trees who were trying to escape
or enlighten the vulnerable trees.
Eventually, the trees that did escape still lived under the oppression of the loggers.
No matter what they did, good or bad, they were being
watched.
They were either captured again and forced to become
locked inside of cages,
Or were chopped into pieces, their seeds falling into the soil.
All of the seeds pushed deep into the soil,
starting the process of becoming new trees.
So, these trees became brainwashed into believing they were either going to
end up in cages,
working for the loggers,
or chopped into pieces.
Young trees would jump to extreme measures to fight
against the loggers and free the other trees
so they can become powerful
and live morally good and peaceful lives,
but they did not have support from the other trees.
These trees would tell them that they need to deal with they way things were going,
because nothing
will change.
Young, innocent trees were getting chopped
as their backs were turned,
others were getting sucked down
into the quicksand beneath them.
Some trees felt that enough is enough.
They studied and learned that they were the original species of the earth,
that they provided oxygen and
other advancements,
and there should have been no reason for them to have been
destroyed.
They learned to work for themselves and establish their own communities,
so they could thrive and live successful and pleasant lives,
without having to worry about the
evil system the loggers developed for them.
The quicksand disappeared slowly as new earth formed a barrier around the trees.
The loggers tried their hardest to cut down the trees again,
but since their economy dried out,
they failed.
Now the trees re-established their empire,
and were never under siege
again.
Earth Strong, Copyright 2017 Mesha Allen. Originally written as part of her presentation at our Deep Ecology lecture series, a continuing cooperative program of Newark Center for Meditative Culture and The Spirit Centered Life. She is an activist who founded the Newark Integrative Enrichment Society, a community initiative. She is a student, presenter, and volunteer with NCMC.