October 11- Bike In A Tree

                "It is with a bicycle that this story begins...."
                               Berkeley Breathed, Red Ranger Came Calling

                                                                             Bike in a Tree

A house full of children

All of them wanting to ride

Ten-Speeds, two wheelers,

Trikes, lounging on the front lawn.

Where did you leave your bike?

A blank face, grimy with forest dirt, thoughtful,

Did he have the bike when they

Came out of the trail?

The next day it rained,

And the next, the whole family

Went to the beach,

The bike forgotten against the tree.

At first the tree felt the weight 

As an irritation.

As days turned to years the branch

enveloped the red seat

Making a cradle to support the intruder.

The tree reached upward and 

By default the bike was elevated as well.

Front wheel turning slightly right,

Ready to ride into the south wind.

Decades later, 

Wondering eyes looked to see how it was done.

Why did the tree accept this burden?

Why had the bicycle stayed it's ground.

Who was the boy, now a grandfather,

Who abandoned his way around town?

By Gabriele

This is truly a landmark on my island. To this day I have not heard an accurate account of how it could happen or who's bike it might have been. Legend says that the tree must have been growing around the bike for more than fifty years. Sadly, really sadly, it is deteriorating as the years pass. It sits nestled in the woods off the main highway and some years the path in is barely passable and other years someone whacks away the forest growth and the path to the bike is open and visible.  I love the mystery of it. I love how nature accommodates and allows growing to happen even when obstacles stand in it's way. 

I am writing for 31 days this October about Island Life. Click here to see the other days of writing.