Chief

In the West, a grove of ancients reside

Original organisms, a rugged one of a kind

Each uniquely unique, together among the earth

Oldest of living trees, some three to five thousand years

Astonishing to think, the stories they could tell

Millenniums spent enduring, adapting, growing

Weathering harsh climates of change

Exposed roots lay bare with each twist of history

Yet the Bristlecone Pine continues to nurture life

Within its gnarly wrinkles, inspirational beauty

Surviving the winds of time, a mentor for humankind

Offering quiet wisdom, if only we search to see.