Sinking your hands– a shovel, a rake— into dirt feels so simple. So solid in a shifting world. The earth turns over; its dark belly gleams toward the sky.

Spadeful by spadeful, you shift the contour of things.

You dig the hole.

You plant the tree.

Your hands smooth the dirt and tuck the roots to bed beneath their earthly blanket.

Your fingertips cast traces that will disappear with time, yet your touch will linger on the tree. The eyes that come to admire it will see a flicker of your shadow streaking through the rain, the sun, the path of seasons.

© 2023 Katie Baker