The tree that never fell

Tough bark
On rough skin
Feeling all it's layers
But each is so thin.

A ring for each memory,
To each scar that remains
Wild leaves blowing
To the earthy ground it claims

It sheds its leaves
And begins each year a new
But a ring around the edges
Will help it remember what it has been through

Tall and steady,
Roots clutching to the ground
Animals build homes here
It is going to take a lot to tear it down

And yet, as I look,
Through the peeling bark and falling leaves
I admire this tree,
And everything it believes

For it always starts fresh,
With each season that blows
Never letting the hurt
From extra baggage show

But it never forgets,
And it still stands tall,
Through the snow, hail, rain, and sleet,
It never will fall

I wish I were more like this tree,
Standing tall and proud,
And nothing they could say,
Would ever bring me down