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| A photo of a painting by my sister, Beth Hill. |
The Fear and Hope of Salmon
when the river ice rots
if the conditions are just so
perfect sun, wind, warm
the sheets become crystals
millions of thin cold daggers
one rubber boot kick and an ice pan
disintegrates with the sound
of chandeliers coliding
into mirrors and
the feeling
as that ice rushes
past the riverbank
is sadness and excitement
winter all but a desiccated corpse
summer just days away
and fear and hope
the salmon will fill
the void the ice left behind
[Poem #29 for National Poetry Day! Yup, a poem a day for a whole month. I'm all but there!]
Good Afternoon Coach,
ReplyDeleteI asked my geography professor if I could repost his comments about my paper, Kuskokwim King Salmon Run 2014 and Beyond, he said yes so I pasted it below. Thanks for letting me use your excellent poem at the end.
All the best,
Jeff V.
Hello Jeff,
I really enjoyed your paper. I particularly liked the poem and I too recall "an ice pan disintegrates with the sound of chandeliers colliding into mirrors...." - brought back old memories of the Bulkley River melting in Spring in my backyard in northern British Columbia.