| I. City I take my baby for a
walk,
And trace the concrete, block by block.
Square by square and row by row,
Where imprisoned flowers grow.
Push the stroller up
the hill
To one spot (nostalgic thrill!)
One corner where a pine tree grows,
And on the ground a carpet throws.
Through the needles,
mem'ries weave,
But then I have to turn and leave.
Street by street and block by block,
Each house is run by electric clocks.
Salesmen knocking on
the door,
Jostling carts at the grocery store,
The sky is brown, the stars are dim,
The trees are dying, limb by limb.
Starlings crowd the
songbirds out,
Dogs bark; neighbors honk and shout.
Backyard picnic? They watch you eat.
Rock music blasts across the street.
|
II. The
Land Now I walk uneven
ground,
With hemlock needles strewn around,
In wild abandon, flowers play,
Spilling over every way.
My boy is growing strong and
proud,
His brother leaps and laughs aloud.
Wading in the pond and creek,
Tadpoles, frogs, and hide and seek!
Flashing bluejays
scold and purr
In sparkling boughs of Douglas Fir.
No telephone rings, no traffic roars,
In sun and blue a great hawk soars.
I share my yard with
timid creatures,
Wild and fluid in all their features.
In flying colors and joyous song
The birds are with us all day long.
Escaping all the
crowds and din,
We let the darkness tuck us in.
Coyotes serenade the night -
Now all is peace and all is right.
|
