The Invitation
I called you today when you slept
The grass chopped and the soil swept
The air was gentle, crisp and sweet
With beetroot piled in a heap
And ants they tickled with tiny feet
I said that boy I’d like to meet
I felt you nearby me this day
When a young pup began to play
He sniffed and wiggled at my roots
Trod soil over twisted tubers and shoots
Whiskers moistened by ripe, softened fruits
I said let me talk to that still growing youth!
I invited you this week
With raindrops falling as you sleep
The buttercup ant, the dampened crow
Watched the storm clouds come and go
Icicles touch my frostbit marrow
I said that man I want to know
I longed for you this past year
As the maple tree began to tear
The soil and earth turned to hardened clay
Sheets of ice decorate the lakes
In a burrow the garden toad hides away
I said to that man, must it be this way
