For Leo
Under the oak in the wide field
The ropes and the planks, they still sway
They’re the swing that I hung when I was still young
And that tree was the best place to play
The tree was our playmate in all of our games,
A place where we’d seek, and they’d hide.
And in summer’s heat a cloak of cool shade
Where the children would gratefully bide.
The years covered thoughts of that oak where I played
Sat cradled in branches so strong
Am I so ungrateful to this old companion?
Have I done so foolish a wrong?
But today a kitten and puppy together,
Are welcomed to bide with my friend
I’ll watch, but fear nothing in that tree’s embrace
As a new age of children it tends.
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