Working the River
Nature-made, the river
jumps the banks to curl
the earth in and under
and down,
just as the sea
reclaims its land
from that very first rising
out of its depths
Here, our house stands
bravely facing
that watery uprising,
and so
we work, bringing thick stumps
that once held
towering trees aloft,
to edge the sinking earth
And then come boulders,
rough and heavy, to hold
the banks back, and hug
those former trees,
now stalwart soldiers
standing river guard,
while in between,
the water seeps
Water always finds
an opening,
and we invite it
to flow
beyond our permitted
work, and the house,
man-made, sighs in relief
at its reprieve
At its best, work
does not destroy
but shores up, respects
nature’s pathways,
employs the labor
of man and tree and rock,
and preserves the life
of water, and of land
8/15/20