OAK

by Sharon Ashton


OAK


Midsummer king
Leaf-lipped man
Consort of ivy
Lover of mistletoe

Mud-drinker
Bluebell-shader 
Pixie-hatter 
Pig-feeder
Fungus-breeder 
Homer of owl and crawling thing

Skin-tanner
Beer-barreller
Victor-crowner
King-concealer

Sedan for the pox-marked in powdered wigs
Frame and septum of house and ship 
Arche of door and servant- paced floor
Cradler of canon and dissolving flesh

Crusher and splinterer
Wracker of unrepentant ones

Cooler of fever
Healer of kidney
Soother of aching limb

Autumn ruster of pool and sky 
Conductor of bird song 
and electricity
Photosynthesiser

I know all this of you,
but what do I know of you?