Point Defiance Park

Jutting
into Puget Sound
like a giant,
rude thumb,
this remnant
of ancient forests
refuses to succumb
to the blight
of ARSECO, Weyerhaeuser,
this City of Destiny.

Ringed by
million-dollar homes,
forced to endure
the indignity
of latex condoms
aluminum beer cans,
the land feigns
indifference,
concealing man’s neglect,
behind three-foot-high ferns.

Scarred by forest fires,
but saved from
ravaging chainsaws,
this forest quietly
harbors shy,
Pileated Woodpeckers
hammering in the distance
all day hunting insects
slowly devouring
towering Douglas Firs,
Western Red Cedars.

One thought on “Point Defiance Park”

  1. I like the defiant spirit that emanates from the last verse.
    “…Pileated Woodpeckers
    hammering in the distance
    all day hunting insects
    slowly devouring
    towering Douglas Firs,
    Western Red Cedars.”

    Distracted by the violence of industrial rapes, it is too easy to miss the humming rage of the woods, the chewing and gnawing daily cycle of destruction and decay.

    On another note, I read on this site about a poem called “At the Summit”. Does anyone have a copy they could post or email me? A friend summitted Mt. Vinson in Antartica yesterday and I would like to forward this along for contemplative reading when his feet leave ice and touch dirt.

    Love this site,
    anne

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