A family tree (by Jules Renard) They welcome me, warily. I may rest and cool down but I can sense that they're watching me closely and cautiously. It's a family, the elders in the middle, surrounded by the youngsters whose first leaves have just been born, more or less everywhere, but not one of them has opened up yet. There trees take a long time dying and they keep the dead ones standing until they fall down like dust. They gently stroke one another's branches, to make certain they're still there, like blind people. If the wind runs out of breath trying t uproot them, they wave their arms about. There trees will gradually adopt me, and in order to deserve it, I'm learning the things I'll need to know. I already know how to watch the passing clouds: I also know how to keep still and I've almost learned how to stop talking. #wood #trees #julesrenard #treesfamily