By the Hill
I scattered the voices
My hearing was drowned
Before the music rose.
In the afternoon sun—
Eagles and hawks compete
For the past.
Sparrow, pigeon, wren—
We line up for the feast,
A share of the space
Beneath the clouds.
A brown, grey flight a-clatter with the wind.
The gathering takes in difference
And difference.
Relieved of pattern and yearning,
Accumulate the time,
One, two grains at once.
I lay dawn on the horizon—
It rose to touch
My share of wonder.
Come cither, chestnuts in the morning light.
Our wood is resonant with
Tune and tone.
Day flows into night...
We take the note of darkness,
Fold it around our shoulders.
Like a vibrant shadow—
The cycle of return
Makes its intermittent interference.
One blind eye is too much.
One lost soul, total waste.
We must have it all.
We may pitch our tent,
Set ourselves at ease,
Make our peace.
On the side of the hill,
The shade grows deeper,
Wider.
Wait for our comrades.
Eclipse hesitation.
Take hold of each other. Embrace!
To retrieve hawk wings for the dew.
We dive deep inside, swim
Through the yes and the no.
I have only one intuition:
For you and for me
And for the stranger
We can only hope will pause—
Every moment
Creation works
To set you free.
That last part was really good dude.
Thanks, Keeper
Petr
One of your best, Peter.
Les
The ecology of promise seems to depend on an appreciation of all of us as a part of the solution to each of our problems. Every brown pigeon counts.
Thanks for the revival, Les.
Peter
I really like this, Peter. Of course, any poem that mentions pitching a tent has my vote. Funny, because just yesterday, my niece came to ask for our help because with her door open for some air, a pigeon (gray, not brown) had flown into her apartment and could not find its way out. With a net and a blanket, we were able to scoop him up, set him on the porch railing, and watch him fly back to his freedom.
Anyway, this is really a beautiful piece.
Mary
Thank you, Mary
Peter
I love this, Peter.
Yes, Peter, this is one fine piece of writing.
Mary
Peter, this is excellent.
The last stanza is the break out stanza and is perfectly placed to clench the deal.