choosing life

when we moved to

Connecticut almost

a decade ago

I had an idea to plant

a tree each year

as a way to mark time

and to leave something

growing when we left

and so I planted two peach

trees over two summers

today I cut them down

not because they were dead

but because we also tell

time by schnauzers

and one who was not here

when I planted the trees

but has been here

when the meager harvests

fall to the ground faster

than we can pick them

and then after the fallen

fruit has rotted away

Loretta carries in the pits

as if they were prizes

to be treasured and

chewed to bits

and swallowed

which turns them into

life-threatening

schnauzer hazards

I chose one life

over two others just

as they were blooming

which gives me pause

as I await the resurrection

Peace,

Milton