Rag trees are, of course, less common now. The faith that dressed them for centuries is in rapid decline. It's that fact that gives them a poignancy that's quite different to the poignancy they had in their heyday. Then it was sheer number of requests or appeals that hard-pressed believers had for the Almighty.
Rag Tree
A thousand dancers for Patrick’s stone
eyes:
leg-kicking
heel-tapping
thigh-slapping;
each one a soul treading thin air.
A thousand clamours for Patrick’s stone
ears:
tongue-clicking
finger-snapping
hand-clapping;
each petition a gutt'ring flare.
