This piece was written by my niece during her sophomore year in high school.
It was composed as a homework response in studying similes.  The class had
just finished reading a work in which a tired, single mother was explaining
life to her son using the example of the stairs in their building.  The
English teacher asked them to use similes and explain life as they saw it.
Since that time this poem has been published in 2 poetry books and posted on
poetry.com.  Enjoy

Tree of Life

You described life as walking up a flight of stairs,
   But to me life can be described differently,
   I think life is best described as a tree.

From a tiny acorn to a majestic oak so is the story of life.
  The seedling represents the beginning of existence,
The better you live your life the higher the tree will grow.
Each branch shows a different path of life you could have chosen,
  Hard choices are represented by each knot throughout the tree.
    The size could have been the amount of time you needed to feel free.

The buds in the spring open up into blossoming friendships.
  Each green leaf represents a new day,
The changing colors symbolize the sorrows and pains you have suffered.
   Each falling leaf stands for a tear that you have shed.
    When a branch is broken it represents an injury,
  Or it could have been the loss of a friend.

  The life of a tree is like the life of a human.
  The oak tree grows a new ring for each year that it lives,
   Just like how wrinkles begin to appear on our skin.
    When all leaves are gone and no more are to come,
     The end of life as we know it, has now just begun.

   Christy Leathers

        Copyright ©2000 Christy Leathers