Classic and Contemporary Poetry
NAVIGATION, by JAMES GALVIN Poet Analysis Poet's Biography First Line: Evergreens have reasons Subject(s): Language; Mountains; Mouths; Nature; Navigation; Sky; Trees; Words; Vocabulary; Hills; Downs (great Britain) | ||||||||
Evergreens have reasons For stopping where they do, At timberline or the clean edge Of sage and prairie grass. There are quantities of wind They know they cannot cross. They come down from the tundra On waves of ridges and stop, Staring out over open country, Like pilgrims on the shore Of an unexpected ocean. The sky is still the sky, they know; It won't understand ordinary language. Meet my mother, twice removed, Who could tell the time from stars. She said everything is its own reward, Grief, poverty, the last word. Evening was her favorite time And she walked along the shore of trees, Carrying herself as if afraid She might give herself away. She called this being quiet. Just inside the treeline, out of the wind, Father built a handrail along the path. She'd stand there like a sailor's wife And stare at the high plains as dark came on. She said mountains might be islands But the sky is still the sky. She'd wait for the ranch lights On the prairie to come out Like a fallen constellation. She said waiting is its own reward, The lights are only reasons. Used with the permission of Copper Canyon Press, P.O. Box 271, Port Townsend, WA 98368-0271, www.cc.press.org | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...CALIFORNIA SORROW: MOUNTAIN VIEW by MARY KINZIE CONTRA MORTEM: THE MOUNTAIN FASTNESS by HAYDEN CARRUTH GREEN MOUNTAIN IDYL by HAYDEN CARRUTH IF IT WERE NOT FOR YOU by HAYDEN CARRUTH A DISCRETE LOVE POEM by JAMES GALVIN |
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