About Jodey Bateman Pablo Neruda Translations by Jodey Bateman Contributors Abuela Musica Jalapeno Peppers Children’s Page Finder Submissions

Stone Piles of the HodenOshonee Cedar-Wood | Poem

 
 
Stone Piles of THe HOdenOshonee Cedar-Wood
 
 

SnOw-FAll
 

O—GhOstly StOne Piles

Of THe HOdenOshonee Cedar-Wood

Hemmed in now by impenetrable Cedar-Brake

                                                    darkly
 

THose hardiest of pioneer species

Reclaiming for NATURE the abandoned farm-

Land that had once ringed these Stone Piles round

Densest of Northern White Cedar now

Restoring Forest w/ a vengence
 

O—GhOstly StOne Piles

Of THe HOdenOshonee Cedar-Wood

By the Deep Mid-Winter

Not sO much mounded-up StOne

As a coverless enclOsure filling up

                                              With SnOw
 

Where primordial Forest had fallen

Now Forest riseth again

Except where Stone’s piled Stone on Stone—

Stone on Stone--Where the former

Forest Ground lies buried deep

And only the Moss groweth Green
 

O—GhOstly

Mossen Testaments

To a Forest Sacrifice—

Monuments to A Long-Forgotten Time—

A TIme when timber of ancient split-rail fence

Stood TAll and Green in THe Cedar-TRee--

HAUnt of THe GhOstly SnOWshoe

                                Fore-FAthers

O—GhOstly—

And even more sO now

In the reverential hush

Of A February SnOw-Fall

ALL THese GHOSTLY Silences

       Quieting—

                       Quieting—

                                       Quieting

                                 THe

                  Restless

      Mind
 

                                  HOdenOshonee

                                  Cedar-Wood

                                  Mid-Winter

                                  Y-2K+2
 

to Larry   /   to Moongate