A Tree's Lament

I stand alone
No one like me
Inside the boundary
No way of escape
I’m grounded and rooted
The winds blow right through me
The sun beating down on me
What can I do?

The mighty stand outside
The razor-wired fences
Stronger than stone
No way to break through.
I’m just a small one
Weak-limbed and shaking
Watching the Terror
Is all I can do.

Why, oh why, will they do nothing?
The mighty outside stand looking away
Why, oh why, can they do nothing?
Ignoring the truth as they waltz through the day

The crowds form at the gates
Smoke pours from the trains
Confused and bewildered, the passengers mingle,
Until the guards move them on.
No one known to welcome them
No one friendly nearby
Nothing but fear in their eyes
As they’re brought within to die.

And I’ve seen it all
Women, children, old and young...gone
A jumble of clothes, empty suitcases
Scattered across the ground
And I’ve seen it all
Men beyond years sort through the piles
Picking like ravens for scraps
The last reminders of lives forgotten

What can I do, for I’m rooted here
Nothing but a twig in the wind.