My Small World
Title
My Small World
Description
In this time of COVID-19, confined by stay-at-home advisories, I find the yard and gardens a world to themselves.
Contributor
E. M. Sullivan
Relation
SRU Alumni
Text
I walk about the yard today
from east to west and
north to south
then again
it’s not a large yard
it’s the world though
at this time
the forsythia shows it’s first tiny flowers
the Magnolia is flush with buds
giving a hint of its soon to be beauty
the green of hyacinths and stems of daffodils
in the beds
Oh, and my clematis
dear, sweet remembrance
what do the plants do all winter?
what mischief in the mulch and mud?
do they huddle all together around some perennial campfire?
Or do they go numb until the warmth of the sun awakens them?
The voles know
cross crossing underground
Driven by by some ancient ritual of survival
They know their own mischief
Leaving trails of fissures on the lawn
Miniature mountain ranges of disturbed earth
Holes in the garden beds
Where they burrowed their way
Tossing the mulch as they dig
Nature will take her course
Without cover of snow
Hawks will swoop
The earth will settle
And we will go back to living
from east to west and
north to south
then again
it’s not a large yard
it’s the world though
at this time
the forsythia shows it’s first tiny flowers
the Magnolia is flush with buds
giving a hint of its soon to be beauty
the green of hyacinths and stems of daffodils
in the beds
Oh, and my clematis
dear, sweet remembrance
what do the plants do all winter?
what mischief in the mulch and mud?
do they huddle all together around some perennial campfire?
Or do they go numb until the warmth of the sun awakens them?
The voles know
cross crossing underground
Driven by by some ancient ritual of survival
They know their own mischief
Leaving trails of fissures on the lawn
Miniature mountain ranges of disturbed earth
Holes in the garden beds
Where they burrowed their way
Tossing the mulch as they dig
Nature will take her course
Without cover of snow
Hawks will swoop
The earth will settle
And we will go back to living
Collection
Citation
E. M. Sullivan, “My Small World,” Shared Voices, Shared Experiences: COVID-19 and the Slippery Rock Community, accessed January 26, 2021, http://slipperyrockcovid19.org/items/show/78.