As part of the Go Dog Go Cafe ‘Classic Poems’ series, I present the celebrated poem of Spring ‘The Trees‘ by the most English of England’s poets, Philip Larkin:
The Trees, by Philip Larkin
The trees are coming into leaf
Like something almost being said;
The recent buds relax and spread,
Their greenness is a kind of grief.
Is it that they are born again
And we grow old? No, they die too,
Their yearly trick of looking new
Is written down in rings of grain.
Yet still the unresting castles thresh
In fullgrown thickness every May.
Last year is dead, they seem to say,
Begin afresh, afresh, afresh.
…..
It is respectfully and fully acknowledged that ‘The Trees’ first published in ‘High Windows’ in 1974 is presented here by Eric Daniel Clarke (EDC Writing) as it appeared in ‘Philip Larkin – Collected Poems’ published by Faber & Faber in 2003 ; and as celebrated by the BBC in 2015.
Go Dog Go Café 
Reblogged this on EDC Writing – Believing Sight Unseen.
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A beautiful reminder that we will all ‘refresh’ sooner or later…
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Reblogged this on Anita Dawes & Jaye Marie ~ Authors.
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Thanks for the re-blog – take care.
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This is an absolutely beautuful poem. I love Philip Larkin. Thankyou for this
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Philip Larkin – essential reading for me – it’s great that the BBC link I included via the word ‘celebrate’ has him reading the poem.
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Oh I didn’t notice that. Thanks for saying. I will most certainly listen to that.
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‘This be the verse,’ is my favourite.
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It’s certainly popular! My favourites are ‘Maiden Name’, ‘Annus Mirabilis’, ‘The Whitsun Weddings’ and the incomparable ‘Aubude’ – ‘The Trees’ selected as it felt right for the days we live in.
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