This dam has given the marsh
a song, liquid allegro
and beaver artistry that arcs
to greet the current, enter slow
then over; upstream anonymous
newly ushered in with laughing,
celebration, gratitude, one side
still and deep, safe home,
the other bright melody – three lives
of water, breath, sunlight blent
in harmony: a hymn.
BILL GRIFFIN is a retired family doctor and full time naturalist in rural North Carolina. His previous books include the ecopoetry collection Snake Den Ridge, a Bestiary, set in the Great Smoky Mountains and illustrated by Linda French Griffin. Every Friday, Bill posts nature photos, microessays, and poems by regional writers at Verse & Image, http://griffinpoetry.com.