Pleasant Hill, CA <br /> <br />1. <br />Civilization. Carpet of grass. <br />A few trees here and there for shade. <br />Beyond the iron fence, red-roofed apartments. <br />Who squared us off like this? <br /> <br />I knew someone <br />who lived in Guatemala. <br />Said that in his village <br />there were no right angles. <br /> <br />No separate plane <br />looking out on Nature. <br /> <br />2. <br />This block's been left, benign neglect, <br />the plowed-up earth abandoned. <br />Wildness has gotten in! <br />Unruly marsh grass rises by the creek. <br />Tree shapes range in fractile profusion, <br />many different kinds of statements — <br /> <br />oaks and willows, pines, <br />quaking aspens, walnuts, olives, <br />and many kinds I do not know. <br /> <br />Small, white morning glories <br />snake across dry furrows. <br />Yellow wildflowers, thistles, <br />and oleanders thrive, <br /> <br />and near the street a tall date palm's <br />large frond-arms wave and boast, <br />'This green is the nectar <br />at the heart of everything. <br />Tear the world open, <br />and this is the juice you'll find. <br />Go mad! Go mad to find it! <br /> <br /> <br />(...19sept2)<br /><br />Max Reif<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/walking-two-successive-blocks-of-the-iron-horse-trail/
