The sun bears down upon the ground
A shoot appears without a sound
I asked the shoot what it was doing there
But the shoot remained unspoken

Branches then formed all around
Shading what was sunny ground
I asked the young tree what it was doing there
But the tree remained unspoken

As the years went by, fruit it bore
New life inside of every core
I asked it what it was doing there
But the fruit remained unspoken

It came to pass that this young tree
Prospered to maturity
High above the canopy
Oh the things it must have seen
I asked the tree for sagely advice
Hoping to hear words of the wise
I asked the tree what it was doing there
But the tree remained unspoken

One fateful day as the loggers awoke
And clad in metal, oil and smoke
The sounds, the lights; I could not hear
The tree cry out in pain and fear

Destruction, decay; all around
The unspoken tree lifeless and bound
Then suddenly, without a sound
A shoot appears upon the ground

I told the shoot what it was doing there
I told it all that had come and gone
I told the shoot what it was doing there
But the shoot remained unspoken