Those leaves are gone now.
Time does that.

Dark outlines of arteries and veins
Strike bold against the twilight sky.

Stillness reigns in resolute nakedness,
No rustlings or swaying in the winds.

With nothing to prove and no one to impress,
They stand strong in their own roots.

The years have taught them and they know,
They know themselves and the nature of things.

They will bloom again.
Time does that.