Pepper Trail’s poem is a striking meditation on the impermanence of the interrelated natural and human worlds.
—
Beyond Unmaking
A child, I learned
This is the river
This is the lake
Here is the father, the mother
In the winter, there is snow
In summer, strawberries; autumn, apples
This is called an elephant, this a lion
Such strange and terrible beauty
And so the world was made
Late, I learn
Nothing is given
Rivers, lakes, fathers, mothers
Snow, the sweetness of remembered fruit
All the great beasts of dream
Nothing is made
Beyond unmaking
***
Read more of Pepper Trail’s poetry.
Interested in submitting poetry to The Good Men Project? Check out our guidelines.
Photo by Tim Haynes/Flickr