photo: ralph murre
In the Moon When
Lakes
We Drive
to Door County
by
Mary Jo Balistreri
The
golden bronze death of red oaks
arches over the road
as
we drive into tunnel
upon
tunnel
of
illumination Country hymns
Carry Me Down By The River
Whispering Hope in my ear
open
onto field upon field of cornstalks
marsh grass weathered red barns stone silos
A
flock of starlings block out the sun
Gulls
assume the sky’s
white
space
trees russet and burgundy
sumac color
of dried blood
evergreens so blue they are black
Snow’s
slate gray sky wavers over morning
A
few flakes drift
fall back
Limestone
bluffs stand still
As
day darkens toward night
those we have lost
appear
along the roadside of our minds
two small boys wave
parents grandparents
friends from long ago
We
carry them forward even as they vanish
into the blur of distance
Carry
them with us
to another harvest
~
first published in Quill & Parchment
