The Oak Noble and broad, old oak, thou art! The sun and shade of ages past, Substantial wisdom of the heart, At once proud and imperturbable.

In tempest blue, o’er courteous change, Thy leaves survive with kindness near, Few storms can shake thy loyal range, And every year holds new frontier.

With sinuous grace thou spread’st the bough, And ancient strength doth speak of thee, Thou art the time’s eternal vow, And shelter for the poor, the free.

So grows the life that feeds its root, As well as all who seek thy crown, Old oak, in thee all minds salute, In nature’s realm, forever found.

• Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr