on the day they plow
the fields clear of last year’s stover
i stay quiet and invisible, indoors

there is a seen and unseen frantic attempt at evacuation, an exodus of

snakes, turtles, frogs, toads, rabbits, moles, voles, possums, weasels, marmots, skunks, raccoons, squirrels, mice, rats,

evicted without notice, again

geese and sandhill crane nests destroyed

winter graves defiled

and newly-born deer crushed, plowed over and under

/this, for corn to fatten confined

pigs, cows, chickens, turkeys, salmon, catfish, tilapia

for human gluttony/

if i just stay quiet,
quieter than the snake and mole i saw yesterday,
if i just stay inside, unseen, all day ‘til Sun’s set, like the possum i saw last night,
then kin will seek refuge, find sanctuary here

to catch their breath

some of us have forgotten that they too breathe

and fear, and wail,

run!!! come, here!!!
stay, please, because the road beyond also brings death!

i put all my faith into telepathy today

the gulls arrive
chasing and taunting the tractor driver,

he’s no farmer
his hands never touch soil or seed

a machine operating a machine guided by satellite

if only the gulls would pluck out his eyes when he dismounts

if only, i would.

Continue reading “the May plow” →