#74 Thanksgiving poems 11/08

Bounce

Bank screw-up
checks bounced
my good name on the line
no choice
jam a trip
into a busy day
fight bureaucracy
to make up
lost ground.

Too much is wrong

life is burdened, gray
and grim.


No car
I choose to walk
am startled by beauty
blue sky
strong breeze
fall leaves
meet an old man
down on his knees
in earth and color
a fellow gardener
who knows
my face.

The woman at the bank
is friendly, kind
sorts out the mess
waives fees.

Outside again
the air is fresh
and all is well
I breathe it in
give thanks.



Cultivating confidence

I have taken on another infestation
at the point of the 45th St. flowerbed
A nasty weed has taken hold
and now it spreads.

The dirt is soft
I pull out plants
with great long runners
under ground
know there will be more
come back in two days
get the ones I missed
come back again to see new sprouts
from hidden roots—
dig out every root
prepare to dig again.

This is a strong resourceful foe
yet I rest in certain confidence
that I will win.
All it takes is patience
decision to take the time
knowing it will not happen
the first time or the tenth
Respecting this weed’s tenacity
and hold on life
but sure that if I hold out
for the flowers long enough
I will prevail

(though other weeds
will come of course—
the larger work is never done).

I like this stand.
Can I transplant it
lend this steady confidence
to other parts of life
where weeds are choking
things I love?
Learn to not succeed
the first ten times
and still go back?

Some things are worth doing
no matter what the odds,
at other points we can’t prevail,
and time is a factor, true—
but with a win on the horizon
it’s not so hard to find the time,

And to see that distant win
requires the confidence
I know the best
when gardening.