April 24, 2020
Photo by Karen Elliot
Bluff
A Poem by Kate Wallace Rogers
Generations of Rosa Ragosa erupt,
petals open like questions
hips swollen fire,
defy wind, raw like desire.
Ocean blasts lash
rattle windows—
nothing but waves break.
The temptation of poison
ivy, that red I want to roll in,
leaves, like shadows,
know the underside, velvet
snapdragons climb a skyline
falling perfect wedding blue.
Wild roses warp below the bluster,
muscle in among the grass and roots.
Here still, in the wilt of afternoon
waves collapsing drench on drench
erode the thorny pull of this
my outermost reach.
Do they know all I want?
to touch something like that dark
between the tender blades.
To submit your own photo or poem, email Assistant Library Director Brittany Taylor at btaylor@clamsnet.org