Fallen Live Oak
Marilyn Robitaille
January 20, 2021
for Inauguration Day, January 20, 2021
Oak tree decline arrived here unannounced
I did not see or smell this ghostly haze
Creeping through the Texas countryside
All within a year or two, the big Live Oak
Shed its leaves, sent acorns madly helter-skelter
All across the yard, nothing left untouched
Like some desperate, last-chance swimmer
Drowning, flaying arms in salty water
Loud cries for help I could not hear, but others did
Resident mesquites replied with Spanish blessings
Scrawny elms across the way said Hail Marys
Sage bushes by the fishpond sang Ave Maria
Nothing worked to save the Oak, the biggest Oak of all
At least five hundred rings around, so many years
Giving shade to those first Comanches on the land
My great-grandfather surely saw it, taking note
On a clear, blue day, this big Oak rising
From an eastern hill on his way to Lingleville
No amount of love or chemistry could save it,
The Oaken soul left during summer months
Branches brittle-gray in moist, heat quickening
Birds knew not to nest there, squirrels stayed away
The dozers came today, and I hear them now
Snarling as they grind away towards Oak oblivion
If I remember anything about this time
About pandemics, about stupidity beyond belief,
About a presidential psychopath who won’t go away
About Proud Boys and rampant racism,
About friends lost and loved ones sick,
About our fallen Live Oak
It will be this: I vow mad determination.
Plant new Oaks for coming generations
Say prayers in Oak remembrance
Cast protective spells for Oaks still standing
The ones still strong, survivors of the blight
Democracy will hold, regardless of the devil’s undertow
I, for one, will turn into the sun and stay afloat
And refuse, along with Joe, to be undone.
Marilyn Robitaille is Associate Professor of English at Tarleton State University, a member of the Texas A & M System. She is founding co-editor of Langdon Review of the Arts in Texas. Her book of illustrated poetry Not by Design: 50 Poems and Images (2018) has been featured in gallery readings with samplings of the original art exhibited. Her work has been included in a variety of poetry anthologies. She is the founder of Romar Press, an independent press dedicated to publishing works that embrace the power of artistic expression, touch the heart, and keep us civilized.
