APRIL-7
THE LONELY ACACIA
It was a long dark journey
For a drop of life
It drank flame with leafy mouths
To be the light
The Tree of Ténéré*
Was the living lighthouse
To the wayfarers of sands
It was a solitary tree
That behaved like a tree
With no pretensions
Like Lithops Julli**
Nomads revered it
No man dared hurt it
The stars forgot to twinkle
When the drunk truck-man
Knocked it down
*Tree of Ténéré, was a solitary acacia, of either Acacia raddiana[1] or Acacia tortilis,[2] that was once considered the most isolated tree on Earth[3]—the only one for over 400 kilometres (250 mi). It was a landmark on caravan routes through the Ténéré region of the Sahara in northeast Niger.
**Some plants use toxins to avoid being eaten. Some use thorns, or turn into carnivores. The Lithops Julli survives by pretending to be a rock
Posted for Open Link Monday @ Real Toads
