And here they come,
With their knives, axes and blades
They’ve come to tear me apart,
They’ve come to take out my heart,
And leave me writhing and bleeding,
Till my last breath leaves me

Their metal weapons
Glimmer in the sunlight
It blinds me,
A dangerous sight
It’s a foreboding
For me to clearly see

And as they near me,
I shudder with fright
But it’s not for my life that I fear,
No, not my life
Because my life has never been my own
I live for others,
I feed them, shelter them, care for them,
Until they need me no more

And now it’s this fear,
This fear that hurts me so;
It’s fear for the little creatures
That consider me their home
It’s fear for the lives
That seek shelter from me
And it’s fear for those that need me,
But are destroying me anyway

The men approach me,
And with an evil smirk,
The vicious human lifts his axe,
And pulls his arms down towards my spine
A sharp sting courses through me,
As the knife cuts through my rings
I let out a low groan of pain,
Inaudible to all but the green earth,
And I brace myself,
For the End

The little birds and squirrels,
That seek shelter in my branches,
Scurry off in fear,
Each in distant, dazed trances
And I didn’t even get a chance,
To bid all farewell
So silently in my heart,
I pray to God,
Let all my children be alright

The men cut deeper into me,
And the pain is too much to bear
The last of my little friends are leaving me,
And I feel my heart crumple
As I watch their backs,
Heading to a place
Where they will be safe
A little while longer

It’s almost done,
And if it isn’t,
I’ll surely die of the pain
My hisses and whimpers are drowned,
By the buzz of the tools
That are sucking the life away from me

Invisible tears course down my trunk,
And I know only a few blows are left
And I feel the earth pull my roots tighter,
No use, my love,
I whisper softly,
I have to go now,
But her pull doesn’t relent
Because her pain is mine,
And my pain is hers
And without her,
I cannot live,
And neither can she
Live without me

With a deep grunt from the monster,
The last blow strikes,
And my head spins
As my body begins to fall

And as I lie there on the ground,
With my pride stolen,
And my love lost
I take my last breaths

I feel the world come to a standstill,
As my heart pumps it’s last beat
And I close my eyes forever,
Never to see this world again
I take a shuddering breath,
…And then it’s farewell at last