Leaving

The pear tree blooms
outside your window
where it has grown tall enough
for you to perch on its branches
like the cardinals and blackbirds
that sing you awake.

The pear tree’s buds
are on the cusp of opening
greening, as the days warm
a verdant mosaic
promising seckel pears
that will ripen
while you finish growing up.

The pear tree knows you
knows the seasons of your childhood
its buds will give way to leaves
just as you will give way
to leaving.