2nd Annual Arbor Month Program
Have a look at all of last year’s entrants, winners and a video of our 2022 program here: https://www.tualatinhistory.org/programs/arborday2022
The Historical Society is a proud grant recipient from the Cultural Coalition of Washington County whose funding helps support this program.
TREES & THE HUMAN CONNECTION
By Shelby Bell
It’s Spring: I took a little walk
And sat upon a rock
I studied the trees…
Some, ‘tho barren, hinted at new life
Waiting to burst forth at just the right time.
Some were green and healthy, swaying gently
with the wind.
It was obvious that some had weathered many storms
- but yet they stood.
Some were tall, straight and strong, while others had
branches that were worn and tired.
Still, parts of them bravely carried on the fight to
stretch their branches towards heaven.
But the one that struck me most, was
the one that bent to lean on his stronger,
taller neighbor
Who carried them both for awhile so together they
could reach the lofty peaks.
Enduring Presence
By Trish Brisbois
There is a sacredness to your beauty.
Blessed forest, woodland, and grove;
tender seedling and sapling.
You are the collective.
You reach back in time
and stretch forward into the future
where we did not and do not yet exist.
The stars applaud you,
the sun embraces you,
the wind enfolds you,
while the rain restores you.
You rise into the sky
as you descend deeper into the soil,
weaving your magnificence
in layered rings of time.
While an eagle perches on your highest limb,
the moss clings to your trunk;
you are spirit, you are earth,
you are the sum total of the elements
captured in a single moment.
As you frame the dawn with its rising sun,
you are our spiritual advisor
and guide to the morning.
As the sun dips low and the moon rises,
you sing us to sleep;
sheltering our dreams
while the night breeze whispers
amidst your branches.
Blessed forest, woodland, and grove;
tender seedling and sapling.
How you persist in such a fractured time,
weathering storms, born anew from ashes;
remaining solid, true and strong.
We revel in your enduring presence.
The Best
by Alexandra Stoehr
Of those in the forest, which one’s the best?
Is it the lion,
Brave and strong
In pompous show
All the day long?
Or maybe the leopard,
Beautifully dressed,
Happily unmoving
From his place of rest?
Perhaps the bear
With but one wish,
Roaming about
to hunt and to fish?
Or is the deer more apt,
With antlers lush,
Quiet and nimble,
As he moves through the brush?
While all these creatures are fine as can be,
None could best the noble tree.
Give me the tree,
Gnarly and free,
A shelter from storms that may come in the night,
Her branches the start
From which dreams take flight.
GROW
By Briisland
Everyone talks about how people grow.
how people evolve.
But not many
talk about people
being robbed of their presence
While still existing
Not many talk about the light that keeps dimming.
I was taught that people change
People shift
People Grow
But inside our soul
We’re given a light
A light that is so divine
It leads those who are reborn
We’ve been created before we were formed
No one told me about the pain we endure
While finding ourselves
but finding that everyone else
Is hiding
Some are simply fighting
Some are slowly dying
& there are those that are just thriving
In the deep
In the dark
Your pain is what fuels their heart
God is far , as from him , they depart.
Those are the ones that take your light
Just not for themselves
Your light is the product
For the deep
For the dark
The deception
is the job description
The pay
is the power they’ve been missing
They’ve found peace in their missions
But know nothing of the prince
Whom they’ve listened
Everyone talks about the sickness
But not about the root of the disease
Everyone so desperately wants to see
So they lack faith and belief
Unfortunately this leaves so many deceived
And full of greed
Dimming the lights
Of those who want to love & create peace
They might’ve not told you
But you are worth more
God is waiting for you
To want to be restored
No man or woman is worth
Losing the fight
No man or woman
Is worth losing that light
They might’ve not told you
But your soul isn’t of this world
You need to find that light
That dwells in your little girl
Leave those that dwell
In the deep
In the dark
God created your heart
He will lead you out the dark
We’re the ones apart
But Gods ready when we are.
Poems are listed in the order they were received. They celebrate the spirit of Arbor Month in Tualatin.
The judges have evaluate poems based their ability to entertain as well as technical excellence. All entrants will receive a free annual membership to the Tualatin Historical Society. There will be prizes for the finalists and they have be asked to read their poem live at the Historical Society’s April 5th 1pm program which will also include Ross Hoover, Tualatin Parks Director speaking about the future of our parks.
All poems will be permanently placed into our archives.
This year’s finalists :
1) “Trees & the Human Connection. by Shelby Bell
2) “Growing Green” by M. L. Lyons
3) “Enduring Presence” by Trish Brisbois
To the dogwood tree in my back yard -- sonnet #1
By Molly Skeen
You're rooted in my back yard, growing tall and wide
a dogwood tree, your presence here inspires me
to let go seeming differences, to look inside
I wonder what it's like for you -- to be a tree
In winter you go dormant, do you mind the cold?
come springtime you adorn yourself in pink array
your leaves will wilt in summer drought and heat, I'm told
when autumn comes you drop your leaves, to my dismay
Your branches are a place of refuge for the birds
while robins take a break there from the search for worms
a steller's jay squawks loudly, hoping to be heard
you welcome them, squirrels too, freely with no terms
You teach me how to be at peace, open, and still
I'm part of nature too, with purpose to fulfill
Growing Green
by M. L. Lyons
Allow the branches to brook themselves
and river their roots to where they please.
Ancients and ancestors sang of the bounty that beauty brings,
filling splendidly every lovely arm with flowers flourishing into fruit.
The growing green lushes our lives into emerald canopies.
So seed the loam and plant again until a widening woodland springs,
and savor these sweet woods, which mother-like
breath out into the breaths we take.
Tualatin tree poem
by George Klein 3/8/2023
See Tualatin trees blow in the breeze
They add fragrance and color
Some cause us to sneeze
Sheltering and shading they help us all
Adding beauty to our city
Growing wide, narrow, some very tall
They are like us, in many ways,
With challenges and problems,
Needing sunshine in their days
Volunteers plant many,
You may come to know
With water and time,
Let’s watch them grow
They share their surroundings
Connecting our world so sweet
Adding buffers to our waterways
Where we walk with our feet
Each is unique and special you know
Like you and me
Exposed to sun wind rain and snow
They bring many a grin
As they bloom and unfold
Announcing spring is here
They’re alive once again
Say hi to them
See them wave back
There are firs, pine, and even some hem
Thanks to all who make it so
Because it’s all appreciated
Giving Tualatin a glow
They help our river
Stay protected and wild
Its waters run through us
And are fun to flow
The Legacy
by Luann Hawkins Wiedenmann
Memories whisper among the branches
of ancient ash and white oak trees;
pioneer voices heard long ago,
now wispy legends dancing on the river's breeze.
Those folks were the first river keepers
stewards of the tree-lined bank,
who felt the cool of the Big Leaf Maple;
watching deer and fox who cautiously drank.
Those were the settlers and weary travelers
grateful for the boughs of shade
who smelled Cascara's late-spring blooms,
where tanagers and hummingbirds displayed.
Did westward elders treasure
the giants on the shore?
Roots coaxing soil to remain
rich litter carpeting the forest floor?
And when they leaned against those sturdy trunks,
some silky smooth, some rough with grooves,
did they ever wonder how many would remain?
Or mourn those that had been removed?
But what will we do now?
caretakers of this crucial trust.
Will we honor the legacy
and nurture the ancestral gifts?
I think the answer is...yes, we must.
The Imagination of a Tree
by Genevieve Ford
I recall the moment
My Mother
Found a small
Trickle of water
In the ground.
Her excitement,
And my wonder.
How did she know where to find
That opening -
That place ---
Wherein a seed could be placed?
And ... thus ... from there
A tree would flourish
And grow.
No longer a wonder!
Yet therein was the view
Of a tall green citadel
Which became a tree.
THE BORLAND ROAD GIANTS
by Barry Hazard
Columns that hold up the sky,
22 giants strong and high;
Mixture of Majesty and Mystery,
a BIG part of Tualatin’s history.
In splendor they grant those who pass
a sense of Peace and Tranquility;
with Power and Grace
they call to all, “Come and See!”
Once when recovering from surgery,
I walked to them with difficulty;
Touching each one they “spoke” to me
with assurance about overcoming adversity.
Unique they stand all 22 in a row,
A stunning sight for the eyes to behold;
In their presence we stand in awe of
the mighty trees of Borland Road.
