NAPOWRIMO Splatterings 4-21: To Catch a Butterfly

I approached the oldest tree in the forest
With the most convoluted trunk formation
His dead branches are his reverent statues
I ask him how to catch a butterfly
Like the ones that surround him
But never dare to land
He speaks of stillness and patience,
but I know stillness alone
Only catches precluded hope
Vulnerable to gusts of wind
The triumph of the will of random chance
Builds only the valor of serendipity

Great wisdom in stillness
but once stillness is achieved
Knowledge and strength will hold her loyalty
Moments conquered and foes bested
Will keep the gentle creature invested
For only when your honor is tested
Will she be yours forever

The tree laughs at my thoughts
"Of course you must possess knowledge and strength
You must carry the world
Until you know the weight and origin
of every twig and pebble
And witness every transgression of the will of chance
And how every precious moment can slip from worthy hands
And into idle hands
For they are just as still as yours and no less noble
And imbued with the strength of Earth
And the knowledge of life's burden
That you won't know forever until you're there
You must carry it all
And still remain motionless
When she lands in your hands
Your existence must be
As light as hers

Before I understood
I had to know why none landed on him
"In my stillness I lost vigilance
My branch fell off
Crushed her against the ground
Not one has landed for even a moment since"

I set fire to his fallen branches
And pushed them into his hollow trunk
And when the blaze was finished
I stood upon the ashen mound
And mingled my roots with the soil below