POETRY
nondum november
“nondum november” read by Christianna Soumakis.
from Gerard Manley Hopkin’s “Nondum”
november drought: lying on my stomach
the ground is dry on my chest. leaves
crisp as paper fossils. I bear my burden
to the riverbed empty as a bassinette whose occupant
has fledged. (I have always been too heavy for flight.)
the scrub begins to doubt. the rain is gone.
con-man sky eternal blue so beautiful a desertion.
only the trees hold the ground in place
roots against mutiny, mute against accusation
endless exhalation, naked slow-ascending praise
at the rate of rootlet and twig-tip. the channel
of the extinct river fills with fallen foliage:
creation’s vacant lamps appall along the sandy-banked
earth-gyring hall. all is quiet. I squeeze the gravel in fists
while the trees perfect themselves in patience.
Christianna Soumakis is an artist, writer, art instructor, and pilgrim. She has a Master’s degree in fine art, has walked the Camino de Santiago three times, and drinks a stupid amount of matcha.
Next (Heather Dickinson) >
< Previous (Michelle McMillan-Holifield)
Photo by Malte Luk on Pexels.com
Heart of Flesh Literary Journal 