Falling,
a field guide
by Laurel Smith
by Laurel Smith
For
how long will you continue to listen to those dark shouters,
caution
and prudence?
Fall
in! Fall in! —Mary Oliver
Fall
like the hands off a clock, knowing
your
new name for the hours will alter
the
caliber of darkness and light.
Fall
like a star, so fast so far you imagine
the
sky as song, words and tune so true
you
can already sing it by heart.
Fall
like a stone into water, ripples and
shadows,
minnows and yellow leaves:
better
than a wish, this stone
with
nothing more to desire.
From
Laurel Smith:
I live in Vincennes, Indiana, and happily participate in projects to
promote literacy and the arts. My poetry has appeared in various
periodicals, including Natural Bridge, New Millennium Writings,
Tipton Poetry Review, Flying Island, English Journal, JAMA: Journal
of the AMA; also in the following anthologies: And
Know This Place, Visiting Frost,
and Mapping the Muse.