Poems for the Wild

With Pa, we walked the mossy maw

The trunk of tree he downed before

We thought it spry to pick it up

We hauled the behemoth to our truck

The green, the great, old Chevy stuck

We pushed we pulled we plaited thorns

My mother watched me steer it wrong

As I plucked wind chips from my hair

And tried to keep the truck from stalling

The bank of the river was steep and sharp

And just a bit of mud was all

That kept us from the waters draw.

A truck drove past up on the hill

And slowed as if to come help us, still

I waved my arms and dad said, stop,

you’ve inadvertently told them to back up

You said we don’t need help today,

I said, I did? But all I did was wave.

So back to push and shove and then,

We finally got on our way again

In the beautiful messy wooden glen

Surrounded by leafy trees

Surrounded by woodland breeze

Enjoying the birdsong and the leaves

Catching glimpses of diamonds beneath the streams

Where the water trickled softly

and pushed ever so gently

little pebbles we picked up for ourselves.

We loved the sweet hush and the dells

We loved the sweet fragrance in spring

We loved it enough to sing!

We did, on down the hill, and up the way

To Motor Mill. Where we, before, had put in

Canoes, and ran the rapids, which were a snooze

We laughed and splashed with our paddles aft

And fore we talked of woodland lore

And bears that hibernated there

And eagles in their tree-top lair

And still we sang before

We sang through memories galore

We sang through mysteries below

And sky-blue whispers of God, we know

We are here for just a short time

And all we must do is climb

Into the great Divine

Where there is actually no time

So—we stand ready on the edge

Of the cliff and sigh a sigh of rest

And sing a tune of blessed

Assurance, Jesus is mine.