Six Humble Landscapes Poem by Barry Middleton

I
the place was filled
with shadow
wet with ferns, musty
green of carpet moss
bamboo rattled
in a hot breeze
I heard laughter
as children played
nearby, clear water

II
adventure ran
deep in swamps
where once
a saurian kingdom
breathed fog
into the fog
and lesser creatures
dreamed of becoming men
where later I explored
and dreamed
of becoming a man

III
laughing at a muffed shot
brotherhood and billiards
cold beer
the glow of a hanging lamp
the summer night
was heavy in the air
the teenage girls
stopped by to see
what boys pretended

IV
in the city the roar
of the beltway hid
behind giant oaks
that lined the path
to somber knowledge
Spanish moss murmured
hiding quiet columns
that faced the green
where in the spring
touch football
claimed dominion

V
a cramped apartment
a kitchen and a bed
brick streets rumbled
beneath our bicycles
past the lake to meet
a rendezvous with fate
pretending to be grown
before reality exploded
the weight descending

IV
pine trees whisper
when the wind comes
fire and thunder
remind me once again
how small the world is
the birds come and go
old folks nod a greeting
I nod and ready myself
embracing the landscape