A tall snag towers over the meadow
Snarly old thing; decaying Ponderosa
Stripped naked in an artistry
of weathered branches.

Its happy to be of use as a vantage point
for raptors, nesting holes for flickers,
transforming from a home of one
to a house of many.

Why do we toss away our elders?
Put them in homes;  uproot them
from fields where they were raised,
greedy for wood or the land they occupy.

Why not nest in their wisdom.
Be embraced by knobby arms.
Climb up tall crowns and witness
the world only age can know.