Rings of Life Michael Martin Murphey

Stronger by circles I grow
Weaker by cycles I die
Letting the symmetry flow
Up from my roots to the sky
Fed by the fires of the earth
Sweet osmosis come quench my thirst
Just one more deep drink for me
One more ring of life around this tree

I'm moving, improving my view
Claiming my right to the sun
Adding on is nothing new
When it all adds up to one
Two, three, four more points in time
These all become well spaced lines
Curving a pattern through me
One more ring of life around this tree

Ring around the roses
Pocketful of posies
Ashes, ashes, we all fall down