Gemotions

He stared at the empty patch of earth, a place where a mighty oak had once stood tall and strong. He felt a deep ache in his chest, a feeling he hadn't expected to experience. The tree was gone.

He remembered the strength of it, the shelter it provided from the rain, the shade it cast on hot summer days. As a kid he had climbed it. Now only the memory of it remained.

His hand reached up, as though to touch the absent bark. He knew he'd moved on from his childhood, but this felt like something precious had been erased. He felt it deep in his soul.