Wednesday 30 January 2013

Sunday Morning Walk In Maidenhead (Trees - Parts Two Three & Four)

Image taken from  Stock.jasonhawkes.com
Boulters Lock Weir - Maidenhead - River Thames Aerial View


I am on the train now
 Looking and Listening
Thinking about where I am going 
Not where I've been
Castle growing in between
Houses peering to be seen.

Moats with boats are enclosed 
By families of encircling trees.
Mansions graced and shaded
With grand old ladies and gentlemen.
Giant firs guard areas of parks and greens
Rivers, brooks and streams.

I am in Maidenhead, taking my Sunday morning walk, admiring the trees; Babies protected by fierce stinging nettles.
Elegant, Swan-like trees dressed in satin, silks and beaus adorning pathways. Grandpas and Grandmas still striving for excellence 
even though they have seen two or three Millennia shading brooks and streams.

Trees with outstretched arms, sturdy roots and twenty odd branches; slim trees whose trunks go up, up, up before the branches start to sprout. Trees with one trunk going up, up then, behold it's twins!
Siamese, joined at the hips.

Trees with leaves so thick and others thin and weightless; straight trees, a few bent and decrepit with Rheumatoid Arthritis, Osteo Arthritis and Ankylosing Spondylitis.

Walking along the pathway, behind Maidenhead library, I am struck by the sight of a giant tree in size, breadth, height and depth.
I see what appears to be triplets or a mum and her twins.
They exude a mass of colours; burgundy, red, pale green, orange and dark brown.

I move along the path to the sumptuous melange of colour reflecting, SAWS, the four seasons...

Summer Autumn Winter Spring.

I bow and curtsy to Mother Nature, raise my head to the heavens
to pay homage and show adoration for this elegant masterpiece
which fills me with a tremendous sense of...

Peace-anquillity... Peace anchored in Tranquillity....

So much so I remain rooted, gazing and examining the magic and fruit of the spirit.

It dawned on me that I could stare at this tree all day long.
Its leaves remind me of a variety of hairstyles. Afro, Permed, Highlights, Semi-Highlights, all the arrays.

Time waits for no-one, therefore, I move on taking in the crisp morning air, gliding along, in the Silence of this Sweet Sunday Morning.





Sunday Morning Walk In Maidenhead

 (Trees Part Three)

Real-Life


Before me, I see a bent half fallen tree trying to match his wit with gravity's. It makes me smile to see a middle size one embracing him, keeping him steady on his feet.

His pale bark reflects his inner being; dangling, listless branches and leaves drooping with just about enough energy to withstand the gentle breeze.

I tread on and come face to face with a ballerina full of life, beauty and grace, then Mummy with babies to her breast;
hugging her so tightly they're crushing her chest.

Adjacent, a toddler reaches out for a cuddle from mum.
Strong and sturdy teenagers provide emotional support to young, luscious Ivy sheltering tiny, prickly shrubs and small, smooth shoots who huddle together whispering secrets.

Just when I think I've seen the best, another pops up and surprises me. Roots spring up from the earth into trunk, and trunk extends to at least seventeen boughs spreading their wings of dense overladen leaves.

Next, I see a set of twins whose thick, pale, green trunk burst forth and then up, up, up it gives birth to Triplets! Strong yet wobbly branches reflecting their fight for life, for survival.

Nearby, a great, great, great, great grandmother sits with twisted trunk. Several Millenniums have passed as she battles with the parasites who climb, twist and turn, around her body choking the life from within. Steadfastly, the old lady continues the fight knowing that she will lose the battle. Her choice, is to commit and take courage to the bitter end.

The path comes to an end so I turn right, and right again, to face trees with boughs bending over brooks and streams; little ones moving to and fro in the mild currents of air.
Excited shrubs with neatly trimmed Afros or Short Backs and Sides.

Weeping Willows drooping like they don't really care who's there. 
Trees of green cuddling red, wounded neighbours and the ones with darker complexions, dark brown and deep crimson,
surround those who are half pale green-half green.



Sunday Morning Walk In Maidenhead 

(Trees Part Four)


Morning Glow


Strolling forwards, I come across an orphan, seeded and planted by man, standing with outstretched arms, searching for his mother and beneath him a row of wild bushes in need of a, "Hello!"

There's a grand queen standing in front of me; her trunk, so well structured and proportioned, imitating the legs of a super model. Her branches and leaves strut and shade the path for passers-by, and strangers to walk untouched by the scorching Sun.

The Town Hall is in close proximity.

Mini trees used for fences, halt my steps. They support family who have shed their leaves for good; their branches no longer sustain the flow of water through their capillaries.
All sorts ferns greet me as they chat to regular Xmas trees sitting, effortlessly, on well laid lawns.

Outside the town hall a deodar cedar, planted in memoriam, wears a plaque,

 "to commemorate the 60th Anniversary of the
End of WW2 and as a symbol of Peace and Reconciliation."

Grand, confident Acacia trees spread their majestic, opulent wings and temporary human eyes to see and admire the beauty of their Dusty, Spice Rose, Pink Peace flowers.

More mini trees sit under the Acacia displaying what looks like baby limes. Wee plants resemble mothers who are encased by shrubs and cheerful flowers, not unlike well cared for children.

The Town Memorial sits near the Acacia and is decorated with oak leaves and Tudor roses.

The inscriptions reads...

"To the Glory of God and the men and
women of Maidenhead who gave their lives in the two
World Wars 1914-1918 and 1939-1945
We will remember them!"

Pause, Reflect, say, Thank You, to the Whole-Nowness-of-life!

I LOVE TREES!!!
They mirror human life and play a very important role in sustaining
The BALANCE in the CIRCLE OF LIFE and uphold the BEAUTY of the EARTH. 
Image taken from Paddlepoints.net
River Thames - Marlow to Maidenhead
I palpitate my circles of light and love
to embrace and engulf you true!

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