Lovely As a Tree

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Lovely As a Tree
I am listening to such beautiful music* as I type, and I wish you could hear it too. It just seems to fit this beautiful tree that I pass in the mornings when I walk on the boardwalk. What I find so fascinating about it is that it looks backlit and glows lime green - at least in the spring mornings. 

$100.00 plus shipping and handling
6" x 6"
Painted with artist quality heavy-body acrylic paint on 1.5” deep gallery wrapped canvas
Edges painted black

As I thought about what I wanted to use as a title for this little work, the first two lines of this poem kept coming to mind. I don't think I had really paid attention to the poem before, and in fact, I couldn't remember exactly what it was that was not as lovely as a tree. A poem, evidently. 

I read a little more about this poet as I prepared this blog post, and learned that he was a father of five children, and that he died in WWI at the age of 31. He was a very brave man in battle. And he was recognized as a poet during his lifetime, though he was criticized for the simplicity of this particular work. 

Trees
I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.

A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the earth's sweet flowing breast;

A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;

A tree that may in summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;

Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.

Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.

Joyce Kilmer (1886 –1918)

For me, I appreciate that Kilmer was recognizing that his artistic offerings never could begin to measure up to the beauty of God's creation. Even the simplicity of this poem speaks to his (and my) recognition of the smallness of human creativity when viewing the beauty of God's handiwork. Yet, this poem became quite popular, and is still appreciated by people today. 

How can I express my thoughts? They are not exactly linear or easy to put into words. As I am enjoying human arts, such as music and poetry, and even my simple representational tree painting, these things just draw me more and more to awe of the Greatest Artist, the Creator. 

*Piano Concerto No. 1 in E Minor, Op.11: II. Romanze - Larghetto by Chopin,  from the movie The Lady in the Van

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