Excerpts

From
HERO ISLAND








To My Hands
Yes yes I do admire your solo work
how you throw a ball
write your name
tip your hat

And I'm proud that things are named for you
giving a helping hand
handing down your outgrown clothes
even handing over something you shouldn't have

But I admire you more together
when you wash each other in the basin
clip each other's nails
or rub each other in anticipation
and it's something quite special
when you reach outside yourselves
to row a boat
or play a sonata
or lift a child

Dying in Pieces is not All Bad
Dying in pieces is not all bad
and if you live at all
that kind of dying is guaranteed
You learn to value what you lose

I never thought much of my sense of smell
the fragrance of spring
the warning of the skunk
my entitlement
or so I thought until my nose passed on

Now I appreciate what I've lost
I'm pleased to hear from others
how fresh and sweet the corn smells

Pumpkins
On the small side
so they hadn't been carved
but they did have gently curved stems
and made a pleasant display
around the red cabbage plant

Now Thanksgiving has passed
The pumpkins are gone
and the cabbage sits alone
The cap of snow on it
made someone say raspberry shortcake

It's the long weekend after the big meal
The guests departed Friday
The house is empty
The sparrows have left the ivy
The pub was busy Friday night
they had already put up a wreath and lights
The ice cream parlor is closed tonight
It is cold

Apple Days
Bury coffee grounds egg shells
and banana peels

Seventeen apple trees
Macintosh Stayman Winesap
Red and Yellow Delicious
home-dug apple cellar for the late ones
good place to winter them over

Sell a peck where you can
Fry them up with sausage
Bake some Winesap apple pies
kitchen smells good
Cook up apple jelly
Press out cider
half a bushel for a needy friend
Hand out drops on Halloween

Eat the rotten save the good
no waste in an apple
Chew it up core and all
good for what ails you cleans out your system


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Scott Lorenz
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