Tannenbaum

we brought it home in a box
it wasn't a puppy
it wasn't a toy
it was tiny
when we first found it
it seemed so easy
a piece of cake
a snap
when we started digging
just a few minutes
then be gone
on our way
we didn't know how very much
time, effort, water and love
it would take
to grow
my mother and I brought home
a Christmas tree
a Blue Spruce
of our own
for years it crouched unnoticed
in the corner of our yard
peeking over weeds
to the sun
and somewhere in there
it became substantial
it topped the fence
it grew
our family joke of a tree
became our pride
it was ours
to share
its branches carried snow
its needles dripped rain
taller than me
it stood
we've gone and it's still there
embracing each day
doing its job
our tree