Can’t believe it’s already the ninth day of National Poetry Month. NaPoWriMo central suggested a 9-line poem for today, and I took that suggestion, but not the added challenge of writing in a particular form or rhyme scheme. I also combined it with the Writer’s Digest prompt to start a poem with “So”.  There is much talk where I live about the devastating wildfire that ravaged Fort McMurray last year, so that’s what inspired this poem.

So This Is What’s Left

There are still magpies, warbling in the morning.

Along the river trail, mayflies speckle a bench.

Vagabond black bears rove the empty streets.

Crooked line of pines untouched

at the western edge of the city.

Haze has released its hold on the sky.

On this block, the Gallagher’s birch tree,

scorched but standing. The highest point.

In spring, yellow tulips will peek through the rubble.

Some poets, like Edmonton’s Lisa Martin, have an astounding ability to bring beauty to themes of loss and suffering.  Listen to her read “On Being In Love” from her latest book Believing is Not the Same as Being Saved, and read the great article and interview below.