Fools like Me

Trees

I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.

A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the earth's sweet flowing breast;

A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;

A tree that may in Summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;

Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.

Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.

                                        By Joyce Kilmer

I love this poem! It is so simple, but yet so powerful. The imagery is gorgeous, and the personification is perfect. The way the tree is written as a suckling baby, then as a spiritual subject, then as a pretty woman, and finally as a sweet lover, is so captivating to me. And the last stanza ties up the beginning, grounding it to the reality that people are just people, and God and nature are far more creative than we are.

Lovely little poem, or commentary on the limits of humanity? What do you think?