"If a tree falls" by Amelia Dunn

"If a tree falls" Amelia Dunn If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to notice does it make a sound?Does its impact even hit the ground? Will the wind still whistle Or will silence echo in the burrows of what once was what once was must be forgotfor leaves will fall again next autumn and shoots will spawn in the spring does sadness fill you as you stare at an empty home or do you dance with excitement at the new creations that bloom within you knock down this wall and we’ll have a dream home But someone else’s once was must now be forgot what once was must be forgotfor leaves will fall again next autumn and shoots will spawn in the spring do you ever want to pick all the flowers to take home their beauty but then remember on the walk back you’ve killed what once was and stripped them from their home just to fill the empty burrows of your own does your own happiness outweigh the presence of othersare you superior do you gather flowers for the home you built on someone else’s refuge and frolic amongst empty crevices unscathed does your god complex out rule you from the damages you create as you turn your back and wave your silence speaks of a thousand names Your presence is impactful but there’s is still blamed Someone running in the woods WILL trip and fall over the cavity of a being that once stood tall someone’s life WILL be destroyed as you strip back the walls that barely resemble the home they once knew someone WILL notice their garden is now bare of the beauty that once bloomed it’s okay what once was must be forgotfor leaves will fall again next autumn and shoots will spawn in the spring but shoots can’t spawn if the saplings never scattered amongst the ground of their mother leaves can’t fall if the trunk that holds strong was taken by another the wind’s whistle won’t be heard if an army of alarms consumes and smothers a nation is silencedbecause if a tree falls down in the forest and no one was around to listen did it really make a sound silence speaks a thousand wordsbut the thunder that rolls in its hollows shudders even louderthe screams of a mother losing her child echoes for an eternity the sound of death knell echo as warning from once sturdy infrastructure the rumble of machinery shatters the glass of what once was Silence is impactful Until it is enforced perception is a construct and construction is a cage society collapses and a country disassembles againMore from Amelia Dunn ↓@amelia.evie_poetry on Instagram and TikTokMentioned in this episode:Write After with One Poem OnlyWrite After is a way to encourage poets to listen and write, and use National Poetry Month to highlight how listening to poetry makes us better poets. I know I write the best when I’m surrounded by beautiful poetry–it’s part of the reason I created this podcast, and I want to encourage others to share this practice. If you want to join: Listen to a poem from the month of April on One Poem Only, then write your own in response. I will pick one for each day to read in June for a special series: One Poem After 🍎🍏 Submissions close May 15.Write After Submissions Form