Tuesday, October 9, 2012
arrows
from leon to foncebadon
my eyes have been noticing the arrows
painted yellow on the sidewalks on the streets
on the sides of abandoned buildings
more recently the arrows have been construed
with stones on the dirt and stone paths
all the arrows point ahead
they all give some assurance that we are all on the way
but what about the couple i saw walking the other way today
i usspect they´ve made their way to santiago de compostela already
and are returning
they´re in it for the walk
bothe ways
but the rest of us are walking west
the arrows are our shared assurance
in the loose knit community
of the pilgrims
the arrow does not suggest speed
some move along fast others go quite slow
the arrows are at ground level for the most part
the other indications of shared community are
the greetings
the daily assurances of good will from strangers
the occasional conversation
the churches we recognize
we share rooms and sounds
our snoring like arrows filtering through the night
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jh,
ReplyDeleteJust a quick note. Over on Kirby's blog, there were three votes cast in the "POETRY AND ECONOMICS: A CONTEST" thread. Two of those three votes (Kirby's and mine) were cast for your poem "rondeau," the other vote (GM's) was cast for your poem "a very long one line poem." So you're the undisputed winner. But I'll note that winning doesn't matter unless Kirby calls it, and he might not bother unless you head over there and take a well-deserved victory lap.
BTW, I liked this post, and the others. I've been following your pilgrimage with Sally and her husband vicariously. I hope Sally's back is doing better.
thanks stu!
ReplyDeletemy back is indeed much better
it does not bother me at all these days
my husband, though
has a cold
as did another pilgrim
we shared three meals with
yesterday and today
so i imagine it is only
a matter of time
before the rest of us catch it
jh is in need of a dentist
(not in dire need, but in need nonetheless)
it may be several days
before we reach a town that has one
though we can always catch a bus or taxi
to the next big town if we need to
our snoring like arrows filtering through the night
ReplyDeletewhat a great line jh
this gets my vote for any poetry contest