A Cousin to the Sycamore

When I travel by canoe, by bicycle, by crutch,

by foot or by wheelchair

I am part of this wide world

 

I am in and of and with the earth and

the earth with me.

 

I am a cousin to that sycamore

over yonder, at the river's edge

and part of that titmouse

dancing in her branches

I am part of that simpering stream that

empties into the river and

that ancient turtle

slipping beneath her rolling waters

 

I am part of those jackrabbits scattering from

them blackberry brambles

where that mockingbird sat

just minutes ago

before she flew away towards that stream

of which I am a part

 

We sometimes speak of "the Environment"

as if it were this

Thing

separate and apart from us

and us from it

but we're not

At least not until we choose to be so

I Hesitate to Bring This Up...

At the confluence of the Beargrass and the Ohio

where a wild winter wind

blows the leaves back up the oak tree

where the mallard and his mate huddle

beneath a fallen sycamore

where eddies swirl and dark waves

kiss the shore goodbye

There are no addresses.

No street numbers to be marked on a map

and kept in a file cabinet at city hall

with a corresponding Owner’s name

Because there are no Owners.

There are no claimants on the water

as it rolls from creek to river to ocean

and back again.

And it surprised me today

as I thought about it

That no one had ever bought the Ohio outright.

 

Yet.

Life in Three Acts

There was a play staged

by a forest primeval

I had a bit part

I served as the stage manager

in a play within a play

put on for my own benefit

I was also the audience

I wrote the plot

which included a twist ending

which I did not see coming

turns out, I was not

the author of the play

after all, just a patsy

Life, in three acts

beginning with the denouement

they'll never see it coming

Walking Through Autumn: Week 10

As Autumn winds down
the colors are no longer as bright
reds, gold, yellows and oranges
have been replaced by

mahogany, rust, leather and copper

But

just as Autumn starts to fade in glory

the ancient Ginkgo trees have

exploded with their

bright yellow joy

bringing a new day

...and this, too, will fade

but the circle of the year will

roll on and on

+++++++++
This Autumn, I took time to take regular photos and notes to map the passing days of the Fall season...

Walking Through Autumn: Week 9

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We've reached that time of Autumn

when it's less about the brightness of the

color of the fallen leaves

and more about the depth of the color

Some piles of bronzed and leathered leaves

suggest the possibility of stepping

right through them into another World

Deep, welcoming, mystery
let us enter therein

+++++++++
This Autumn, I took time to take regular photos and notes to map the passing days of the Fall season...

Walking Through August: Week 8

 

 

 

 

 

 

When I began watching Autumn last month
the predominant sweet Autumn smell I smelled was walnut

Walnuts falling from the trees and releasing their
succulent scent everywhere

Now, at the peak of the Fall Colors,
I’m smelling a little bit of everything

The sassafras and all the oaks, the maple and the walnut
sweet gum, tulip poplar, sycamore, chestnut, elm...
They’re all there, baptizing the woods and
all who enter therein

 

Let us stir those holy waters

++++++++
This Autumn, I took time to take regular photos and notes to map the passing days of the Fall season...

Walking Through Autumn: Week 7

What we think of as “Autumn” - at least in our part of the world
are the weeks when the oaks and maples begin to turn

That time has arrived

The tulip poplars, sycamore and hickories
have been browning and going yellow for weeks now
each with their own charm
but this week
the oaks and maples are making
their golden and red presence be known

May we recognize that glory while it’s here

+++++++
This Autumn, I took time to take regular photos and notes to map the passing days of the Fall season...