A dead peach tree the fruit once ripe and sweet now rotten mealy crawling with insects in an unkempt field

Is it from lack of attention? The weather? I couldn't tell you. What I can tell you is that the tree will never ever produce joy, sustenance, or sweetness ever again. I can promise you this.

"You said you were a dead tree."
"No I didn't."

Or maybe I did, because the tree may as well been made of plastic. Fake.

Dead.