Trees Gather

by Richard Dinges, Jr.

Trees gather sunset,
first blazes of light
across limbs and leaves,
then a darkening.
They pull in shadows
held in clumps
between elbows
and canopies open
under a cloudless sky.
In an upward gaze,
they spread blankets
beneath a universe
where they gather
the stories of stars
wound tight into
each trunk’s rings,
a chapter for each
year, secrets they
weave into hearts.