1
I made Sisters out of branch and leaf
2
I met the Earth and called it brother
3
The only prison is the denial of the Sun
4
I mixed my blood and my tears with the milk of Mother
5
And they persecuted me but my smile was wider than all their Black Magic
6
I dreamt that I was a leaf looking for its Mother
7
The greatest monument on the Earth: a tree
8
And my sisters toiled and I toiled raising our hands against the Sky
9
There is much secret kindness that sleeps in a tree
10
If Man was made in God’s Image then surely trees were the Angels that preceeded him
11
I found the World a desert and so I planted Love
12
I hooked the Moon to my Belt and set to work
13
O Great Festival O Tree
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No church, No mosque, No synagogue is holier than a Tree
15
And the Buddha sat beneath A Tree. And Newton sat beneath A Tree. And the World sat beneath A Tree
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God is The Seed
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Plant and find Liberation
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Plants are the true teachers of Sentience
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A Tree is the Passion of the Earth
20
And Men shunned me and the Earth Gave
21
And the leaves sang in the Wind counting the days of my imprisonment
22
The Kosmos is Tree
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And Africa shall grow into a Mighty Tree that shall shade the Earth
24
And the Children of Africa will Sing a new Song under the Strongest of Trees
25
Behold: I planted the dappling shadows of the Future
26
We are all Mother if we but have the courage to Open
27
A tree does not ask if you are Man or Woman or Animal; it Gives
28
God’s secret Name resides in the Roots
29
The Beauty of My Sisters’ skin glided into the Sky
30
You say there is no magic? Look closely at a tree; hear its breathing
31
The Ancients danced under Trees while their branches shook with Wisdom and their hearts filled with Joy
32
The Ancient Gods have not left the Earth; it is we who have closed our hearts and minds to their presence
33
A Tree is Divine and, therefore, does it reach towards the Sky
34
The Clouds and the Rain and The Sun are the sacred Mistresses of the Tree
35
And as the wind caressed my hair I, too, wished to caress the Earth
36
Sisters! Look upon the Trees and remember the Sacred Struggle
37
Plants preceded animals; they carried the secret of the stars within them
38
The Aliens are here; help them
39
The Struggle of Africa is the Root that shall bind All
40
The Trees welcome Thee
41
Adam and Eve walked in a Garden. Now you walk
42
The Salvation of Mankind sleeps within a Covenant of Seeds
43
Raise your arms to the Sun and plant
44
Trees are great Shamans of Love
45
And God gave Trees eyes; do you not see them?
46
Plant a Tree and know God
47
Each leaf is a greeting from the distant Future
48
Go to my Trees and give them a kiss from Mother
49
Embrace my Trees; learn to see me again
50
Place your hand upon a Tree; place your hand upon my heart
**Wangarĩ Maathai was a Kenyan political activist who founded the Green Belt Movement. During her lifetime she and her movement planted over 50 million trees. They are still there today.
Dan Corjescu teaches at the University of Tübingen’s “Studium Professionale” Program
