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| Credit for photo |
Sand Creek Cottonwoods
At first
the shade
of the gnarled cottonwoods
lining the dry creek bed
is a relief.
Sun blazes
in the cloudless azure sky.
At first
the rustle
of the cottonwood leaves
in the near-constant wind
is a susurrus.
Leaf-babble
in the wide silent plains.
But suddenly
the age
of the gnarled cottonwoods
and the dates on the battleground marker
sink in.
These trees witnessed
And now
the rustle
of the cottonwood leaves
repeats the names of slaughtered elders, women, and children
in a dirge.
Leaf-testimony
in the wide silent plains.
©Mary Lee Hahn, 2020
Oh, the turn from Leaf-babble to leaf-testimony is heartbreaking. How wonderful that you noticed and marked it with this poem.
ReplyDeleteSuch a powerful poem, Mary Lee, and agree with Margaret about the shift in focus; and the susuruss becomes a dirge.
ReplyDelete