In These Times

Spread the love

by Laura Parker Roerden

Hitch your plow to a strong horse;
It’s time to go into the fields once again
to do the plodding work of
planting one blessed seed after another.

Blue seeds, purple ones, grey day ones:
all pressed with intent into soil amended
by bits of remaining trash transformed
through alchemy into nutrient.

Treasure the ones you worry will never sprout.
Bury those on your knees deep into the moist
humus of love for your mother and brother;
breathe hot air into the frozen patches.

Stand shoulder to shoulder with others
pressing closer until your arms link and the seeds overwhelm with their bright
blooming towards the light. By all means

do not forget to sing
while you plant, for prayer is like water
in these times.

This work will take bent backs and great
care as each seedling is thinned and pruned so
that not even one throws shade.

Do not waste your heart in worry as seeds crack

and strain against the clotted, dry earth; surely
they will find passage to the light
and their flowers will whisper, “yes”
when you return in the moonlight to harvest.

 

 

Published by Laura Parker Roerden

Laura Parker Roerden shares a love of what nature can teach us. Writer, public speaker and supportor of youth to boldly know and save the wilds. She is the founding director of Ocean Matters and a fourth generation farmer and thinks today’s young people are reason to be hopeful about the many environmental problems facing us. She lives on a family farm in Massachusetts with her husband, three boys, and an assortment of fruit trees and farm animals.

4 thoughts on “In These Times

  1. What a gift. Absolutely beautiful. I hope you and your family are well. I think of you fondly. Jane and I some day will still make it out for a visit.

  2. It’s amazing. Brilliant. Earth-shaking. Inspiring. I think this may be your best poem ever. Let’s spread it like seeds to the world.

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