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PLANT A TREE
By Lucy Larcom (5 March 1826 – 27 April 1893)
He who plants a tree
Plants a hope.
Rootlets up through fibres blindly grope;
Leaves unfold into horizons free.
So man’s life must climb
From the clods of time
Unto heavens sublime.
Canst thou prophesy, thou little tree,
What the glory of thy boughs shall be?
He who plants a tree
Plants a joy;
Plants a comfort that will never cloy;
Every day a fresh reality,
Beautiful and strong,
To whose shelter throng
Creatures blithe with song.
If thou couldst but know, thou happy tree,
Of the bliss that shall inhabit thee!
He who plants a tree,
He plants peace.
Under its green curtains jargons cease.
Leaf and zephyr murmur soothingly;
Shadows soft with sleep
Down tired eyelids creep,
Balm of slumber deep.
Never hast thou dreamed, thou blessed tree,
Of the benediction thou shalt be.
He who plants a tree,
He plants youth;
Vigor won for centuries in sooth;
Life of time, that hints eternity!
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Who is Lucy Larcom?
Lucy Larcom is a poet, born in Beverly, Massachusetts, in 1826. As a child of seven years she wrote stories and poems for her own amusement. When she was ten years old her father died, and her mother established a factory boarding-house at Lowell, where, after spending two or three years in school, Lucy entered the mills. Lucy left Beverly in 1835 to work in the Lowell Mills. As a mill girl she hoped to earn some extra money for her family. While working at the mills in Lowell, Lucy made a huge impact. She wrote and published many of her songs, poems, and letters describing her life at the mills. Lucy served as a model for the change in women’s roles in society. Lucy Larcom helped women gain rights, which ultimately led to the independence and the equal opportunities women have today.
(Details taken form http://www.peaceinspiration.com/2007/07/31/plant-a-tree)
