An environmentally conscious poem, it raises many questions about how we have been abusing nature. An exclusive for Different Truths.

If I were a tree, I would pluck my fruits
As soon as they would be ripe
And I would distribute them to those who
Roam the streets aimlessly,
Trying to find something to fill up
The growling stomachs of their children!
More,
I would have cleansed my leaves and my branches
So that they turn edible
And I would then allow humans
To end the hunger virus that has struck
Some parts of the world!
 
If I were a tree, I would scan the horizon,
To try to see who needs some relief
In the guise of my shade
And I would uproot myself, walk over
To them and bring them some comfort,
While they would head towards their destinations,
And I would even accompany them with
Some of my stories or even some of my songs
As they have been sung to me by their ancestors
And are still stored in my memory!
 
If I were a tree,
I would reproduce as much as I would have been able to
To create the necessary conditions needed
For rain to fall so that humans and animals
Would never ever feel the sensation of dry throat
And look all around them
But would see not a single drop of water!
 
 
If I were a tree, I would make myself more useful
Then I already am to humans,
As maybe, then, they would let me live and
Would think ten times before
Turning me into logs, or paper, to benefit only a few!

Visual by Different Truths

Anoucheka Gangabissoon

Anoucheka Gangabissoon is a primary school educator in Mauritius. She writes poems and short stories on a wide range of subjects. She publishes regularly on online poetry sites and manages her own poetry blog. She has published a collection of poems in print, in her country, titled “Awakened Fancies.”