Once, the Egyptians...

Once, among abundant tree groves
carving our initials
here
there
up
and
down
the long trunks, we
commemorated
days
of our lives
in space and time
births
deaths
debits
credits
and floods of biblical proportions.


And trees, witnesses of all life and death, growth and decay, tears and laughter
engulfed us
in our cradles
offered pulp and fruit
chisel and hammer handles
to clear the land
and forge new paths
to see above our heads
to worlds beyond our immediate reach
where new standards
could be etched
on paper
traveling by ships
or light source
the Egyptians
had no knowledge of
when they mashed that pulpy tree
to mark the growth of their civilization.