The Tree
It had once been full of life, its branches spread out far and wide. The great bunches of leaves provided the animals on the ground with shade and the creatures such as beetles and grubs with food once they had fallen in the course of their existence. The flowers fed the birds with seeds and fruits that were part of the production cycle. It provided shelter and support for the nests they built to raise their young.
It had started its journey during the trial of a fire, a fire that made the seed burst and germinate. The rains had come and watered not only this small new life but to refresh those plants that the fire had not killed off completely. The seasons came and went and with each passing year it grew taller, stronger and wider. Each new season saw new branches sprout and it seemed as if they were trying to reach Heaven itself.
The succession the droughts, floods, bushfires and storms sometimes took their toll. Its youth was measured in decades and during this time it was able to cover up the damage and its strength increased. It relished in the life that it assisted amongst its branches and around its trunk. There came a time however when it noticed that with each new storm larger parts of were being broken. There was less energy to replace the damage and fewer leaves were being replaced when old ones fell to the ground.
Finally it realised that one day it would only stand as a testimonial to what it once was but it would still be useful as a home for those creatures that needed the holes and cavities that would be created by its death. So it gave in to the ravages of time and became a great monument.