A Poem by John Martin  

When winter ends and the sun extends   
its daily stay, my life begins again  

My roots burrowing down   
to the deep silent waters of life  

My canes reaching up, sailing my leaves  
in the sun’s quick light  

Every cell of my being gorging on  
these moments out of time  

The heat deepens and deepens as  
hawks circle and my green yearning  

Swells into sweet clusters of berries  
that hang heavy in wait  

My labor is done once more, and  
what happens next is the work of hands,  

Of voices and pruning shears, and then  
long slow soundless months dark in oak,   

Always a dream growing through day and  
night of light glowing red in a glass.