Image by kenne
The following poem was part of a blog entry a year ago October on poet Gary Snyder’s reading at the University of Arizona Poetry Center. The posting included my poem, Hawks Circle” with the above photo. Now a year later, much has evolved in my understanding of the natural world around us. For starters, I now know the big birds soring above are not hawks, but turkey vultures. Still, I have, and will continue to show my ignorance as I seek to increase my knowledge of nature.
Hawks Circle
People want to know,
Why Tucson?
With so many roots tied
to the star,
deep and connected,
why turn a back
To comfort?
To convince?
To culture?
Reasons abound
answers diverse,
yet similar.
Some old,
some recently learned.
More often than not
my answer is earthy,
yet ethereal.
Of another world,
yet of one world.
Answers giving birth
as hawks circle
riding the currents
above the foothills
gawking the ground
providing a Gary Snyder image
clear of mind
having no meaning, “but that
which sees is truly seen.”
— kenne
. . . followed by:
Behind is a forest that goes to the Arctic
And a desert that still belongs to the
Piute
And here we must draw
Our line.
As the crickets’ soft autumn hum
is to us
so are we to the trees
as are they
to the rocks and the hills.
— Gary Synder
(from “Front Lines/As The Crickets’ Soft Autumn Hum)
Related articles
- University of Arizona Poetry Center / Line and Space (archdaily.com)
- Turkey Vultures Along The Tanque Verde Wash (kenneturner.wordpress.com)
- Gary Snyder Haunts Me, And As Far As I Know, He’s Not Dead (9-poeticfingers.org)
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