Answer: A. someone in the later stages of life and tree that has lost its leaves
Explanation: The speaker is getting near the end of life, no longer strong and flourishing, but feeling weak. This is like a tree in late fall when most of the leaves have fallen, and the branches shake in the cold wind.
It makes it seem darker and more dreary.
The way my neighbors talk, you would think they were pious but neither of them have ever stepped foot in a church.<span />
