Rising and Falling

 

In spring, when the buds exploded it had unfolded its light green tissue, still a little sticky but the warm wind had dried it carefully. When the rising juices had filled all the vessels, it had become dark green. Then the whole long year it had lived untouched high above the ground.

During summer the movements of the air waved it in sync with all its neighbors, even at some days without any wind when it was very hot it continued breathing, only during the nights, when the light was missing it stopped. It grew, the nutrients produced by it’s green tissue helped other branches grow, additionally it provided shelter from rain and sun to the birds. 

Then the wind became stronger, storms came, even the trunk was shaking and the smaller branches were strongly bent, but they never broke. 

Finally when the temperatures became colder, especially during the night, as a last duty it gave all remaining nutrients back to the branch, where they were stored for the next generation of buds of the coming year. This made it turn its color from dark green to nice bright yellow, it became even slightly transparent in the sun. Finally a light breeze made it to let go, it left it‘s safe place where it had been during the last  year and it slowly drifted downwards, where many others were already covering the soil. It soon became an indistinguishable yellow-brownish spot amongst many others on the ground, all waiting for decay and transformation.