Rings

The ground where I was planted

Excelled above the rest

The other trees I left behind

A giant in the forest

Yet too, this true, my open view

Was better than the best

My trunk was thin as trees begin

And twisted in the torrent wind

My branches

My strength was spent

Each day to meet the storm

Yet year by year

New rings appear

And I a better form

The wisdom of a lifetime takes a lifetime

Though one tree may excel above the rest

Still everything must earn each ring

Through seasons in the forest