Campus Trees

By Hannah L. Johanson

I.
We walked in the courtyard, between buildings R and L –
Constantly bantering about families, freedom, and finals,
Sitting, with arms resting on the oversized study chairs,
We inhabited the student lounge that first trepid year –
Watching the ornamental trees change seasons,
Through the clear glass window panes.

II.
We discussed our dreams in the Fall, buried under texts –
Of Maslow, Whitman, Aristotle, mixed in Grey’s Anatomy,
Sitting, with legs crossed over and papers on our laps,
We talked about entrepreneurship and humanitarian aid –
Watching the dry leaves blow across the nearby sidewalk,
Piling up in a heap of refuse.

III.
We longed for each other in the Winter, cold and shy –
Separated by whitened roads and constant hospital stays,
Sitting, on a rare occasion, bundled up in thermal layers,
We whispered in low tones of pain, sickness, and sorrow –
Watching the vacant branches sway aimlessly in the wind,
Gently shifting the empty carcasses.

IV.
We smiled when the Spring arrived, tired and wet –
Basking in the opaque sun, partly hidden by the clouds,
Sitting, with our shoulders touching and heads bent down,
We silently traced charcoal sketches of birds with new ink –
Watching small blossoms take shape on the outside scene,
Slight glimpses of hope and beauty.

V.
We sighed come Summer, in the oppressive, barren heat –
Shielding our eyes from the incessant light, hiding from it,
Sitting, for the last time in the empty room, two of us alone,
We ate our lunch, cramming for a test on protein synthesis –
Watching the student couple kiss, shaded by natural sculptures,
Reaching up to grasp the vibrant green foliage.

VI.
I cry every Fall-time, in the sharpened campus air –
Running my fingers over the window ledge in building R,
Sitting, where I can watch the first years chatter endlessly,
I go to write my poems, glancing toward your vacant seat –
Watching a constant stream of people walk beneath our trees,
Hurrying by, without regard to the season of life they pass under,
Their footsteps trampling on the freshly fallen leaves.