When I see my old friend Bob
I always think of fire. It’s not
just his red hair & beard. It’s
something more. He built
his first home on the ashes
of an old farmhouse that
he burned down. I’ve seen him
start a bonfire in the middle
of a frozen lake, with nothing
but dead leaves, wet branches,
and a frail BIC lighter.
Now he lives alone with five cats
in a small cabin in the woods
that he heats with wood.
Firewood is stacked up all around it,
just waiting for a flame.
He doesn’t have electricity, or
watch television. But
every night, when the woods
gets dark, & the coyotes howl,
Bob lights a fire. He sits there
until the embers glow, often
in the company of refugees.
——————–
Eric Greinke has been active on the literary scene for fifty years as a poet, publisher of over one hundred of his peers, collaborator with other poets, book reviewer and essayist. In between, he wrote a fishing book, a funny service novel and a book that solves all the problems in the world. He is a Contributing Writer for the Schuylkill Valley Journal and has new work coming in Cape Rock Poetry, Freshwater Journal, Gargoyle, Lake Effect, Lilipoh, Paterson Literary Review, Plainsongs and Trajectory. New book: Masterplan – Collaborative Poems (with Alison Stone). www.ericgreinke.com
Saturday, January 20th, 2018 1:27 pm
Categories: Archives, Issue 11.3, Poetry
