I took my bearings from
a tattered map taped to a lamppost
turned left at the inside-out umbrella
propped against a dumpster
& continued straight past
the strip malls
& the self-storage units
until I reached open ground
contoured with corn stubble
a crow on pond ice
the blue trees of distance
I walked into the wind
sleet stinging my face
& shook my head at every driver
who pulled alongside & gestured to get in
this was where I’d been going
I was looking for a reason
to turn back
This is haunting.
Haunting, yes. And with that spot of beauty in ‘the blue trees of distance’.
That’s a really well made gentle thought poem. It reads lovely out loud, great sounds a walking like rhythm.
This one makes me smile. I love how close to the things and the lay of the land the narrator is.
Thanks — I’m glad this resonated with y’all. I tend to think that understatement is the only way to approach this kind of subject.