Fallen Oak by Giovanni Pascoli Lyrics

Where shade once was, the oak tree in a sprawl
Of death no longer writhes against the wind.
The people say: I see now. It was tall!

Now here and there slight nests of springtime find
Themselves dependent on a severed height.
The people say: I see now. It was kind!

The people praise. The people cut. Twilight
Comes and they haul their loads off. In the air
A cry...a cry of one young wren in flight

Seeking a nest that is no longer there.