Music of the Week

Trees
By Joyce Kilmer (1886-1918)

The poem, Trees, was composed by Joyce Kilmer. Known for poetry that celebrated the common beauty of the natural world as well as for his religious faith, he was killed after enlisting in the United States Army during World War I. The French awarded Kilmer the prestigious Croix de Guerre (War Cross) for his bravery, and a section of the National Forest in North Carolina is named after him.

The much-loved poem was set to music in 1922 by American composer and pianist,  Oscar Rasbach. It is sung here by Nelson Eddy, an American baritone very popular in the 1930s and 40's. You can skip the advertisement after five seconds.

TREES
By Joyce Kilmer

I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.

A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the earth’s sweet flowing breast;

A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;

A tree that may in Summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;

Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.

Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.