Rothgeb Park
I kissed a girl
one night
many springs ago
down in Rothgeb Park
unaware Crabtree Creek
flowed nearby.
The girl’s long since gone
and now that I’m old
I stand alone
here in Rothgeb Park
while Crabtree Creek
flows on and on.
Exile
I wonder what it’s like
in Rothgeb Park
in the summertime
when it’s too hot outside
for old men to breathe.
What kinds of flowers bloom?
What creatures are living
in the grass, in the trees,
and dying?
Do young lovers go there
at night to hold hands
and kiss in the dark
like they used to do
when I was young
in Rothgeb Park?
2 comments:
I like the inversion in Rothgeb Park, between stanzas; the change of viewpoint and the time dilation. Very effective. Not sure the final 'and on' is needed, as the whole poem is about the stream's longevity. It has a clean, Japanese feel, as has much of your work.
I agree with Simon. I really like the sparse Japanese feel to your poetry. "On and on" does seem a little cliche. Lovely poem.
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