Imagine
a row of dominoes
upright across
the floor
or lined along
a table
wooden tiles
with numerical
dots of twos
and fives
threes and sixes
ones and fours
each block different
but the same
With a nudge of
a fingertip
they topple
This is the game
after all
to hear them fall
with a
clack clack clack
clack
a chain reaction
transferring energy
on a straight or
spiraling course
When the storm
comes
the wind funnels
through the creek
with a force
unmanaged
In banks
in narrow
burrows
where it's
calm
swamp rats
curl into their
wood brown
fur
But in tree
hollows
where birds and
gliders hide
violent gusts
buffet the
trunks at
every side
It goes on
for hours
a train
roaring
down
a track
until
crack crack crack
crack
trees snap
like a thunder clap
exploding overhead
Keeling over
tremendous gums
spread
their weight
quaking leaves
smother
one tree which
slumps onto
another
onto another
onto another
coming to
the earth and
ending
with a shudder
Later
June reports
will list
power outages
floods
and road damage
stretched across
the state
but they'll miss
the fate of
trees that have
taken your
entire lifetime
to form
gone
in the blink of
a storm
On her walk
through the
reserve
Jenny observes
the broken
branches
listless leaves
makes her think
about the value
of trees
She grieves the
loss of gums
so big you'd
struggle
to put your arms
around them
It's a blessing
and a curse
they've fallen
towards the creek
and not the eaves
of houses
Some areas
are worse
spots where
roots stand to
attention instead
of in the ground
meant
to last a
hundred
years
now impossible
to pass
Other storms
blow and go
The council
clears a path
Logs too hard
to stow are left
for frogs and
insects
they grow moss
and mildew
fungi
become a
nursery for
microorganisms
that break down
bark and
provide nutrients
to the earth
where
just below the
surface
seeds will birth
new shoots