History Geography
(A haibun)
I have been blessed in my life
To not have to choose
Between mountain ocean or even prairie
My mom had to go from Parsons
To Golden BC so I could be born
Breathing mountain air with mother's milk
6 months old moved to High River, Alberta
Rolling ranch country with a foothills view
Later we were in Assinaboia Saskatchewan
Wide open skys and land for miles
1 year in Regina, Saskatchewan
While my brother was struggling to be born
In the heart of storm country
6 years in Meadow Lake Saskatchewan
Pre teen in a pine tree lake land rodeo town
Sent to Williams Lake BC stayed 20 years
Finally back home in the mountains
Another pine tree lake land rodeo town
Old enough to drive my self and my friends
To the waterfalls and deep river canyons
Climb cliffs and boot ski down
I moved on my own to Kamloops BC
Dry brown hills with a lush fruited valley
2 rivers meet in the park at the city's heart
Learned to busk at the farmer's market
Met my wife at a poetry group
In between all these homes we travelled
Summer Christmas or Thanksgiving
Weddings funerals and graduations
One Grandma in Regina Saskatchewan
The other in Victoria BC
An island off the crowded coast
Driving through old growth forrest trails
To get to Cowichan River bible camp
Fishing off the breakwater steps
Blackberries picked fresh off the bramble
Uncle diving to check his seafood traps
These family trips from the mountains
To the prairies and back again
Revealed familiar roads and vistas
Decked out in new clothes and accessories
With the changing of seasons and weather
Full circle my wife and I have settled down
With the rest of the family and kids
In Regina Saskatchewan
Sure I miss the sight of distant mountains
In the center of the country
Why?
No earth quakes or tsunamis or avalanches
*******
Ocean waves of grain
Wash toward the foothill shore
Farmhouse lost at sea
****
Foothills of cloud build
A dark mountain grows miles high
Lightning climbs its face
I like the personal trip this poem goes on and the line from the haiku about a farmhouse lost at sea is wonderful.
ReplyDeleteThe immense imagery built up is really enticing.Brilliant.
ReplyDeleteMountains have played a big part in your journey.
ReplyDelete