“Old Growth Cedars”

My brother and I take photographs of the way 
sunlight falls on trees, a trait we inherited from our father.

Our ancestors were Maronites, an ancient branch
of religion in Lebanon; they used to attend "church"
in the old growth cedar forests,
where Jesus is said to have ascended to heaven.

An illustration shows them barefoot, 
sitting close together on the ground, listening to a priest, 
their expressions deep in contemplation, while connecting 
with the earth below, their hands flat upon the dirt
and fallen branches, their arms entwined with each other.

Mothers tend to their babies, 
The scent of cedar resin dances with 
the rose and olive oil in their hair, 
tahini and garlic on their breath,
dirt and za'atar under their fingernails.

We sense this connection within our beings, 
and so we take photographs of the way sunlight falls on trees,
to capture a glimpse of this buried history, 
a remembrance of the Earth's eternal mingling with Spirit.