We walked gravel paths
outlined in borders
of timber-wood, winding
our way through white fir,
white pine, western white pine,
close to the drop-off
of a ravine.
He was three years and fearless,
skipping ahead with Aunt Elizabeth,
escaping the path to dart among shadows
and rough-bark trunks and the edge
of a ravine.
He crouched behind a boulder and
whispered too loud.
I spied his blond head.
Where are you? Where are you?
I pretended to be afraid he was lost
when I was only afraid he was too close
to a ravine.
He ran to me and
I inhaled the beauty
of his hair and chin and
the elegance of nature’s perils.
Nancy Jorgensen is a Wisconsin writer and musician. Her memoir, “Go, Gwen, Go: A Family's Journey to Olympic Gold,” is co-authored with daughter Elizabeth Jorgensen and published by Meyer & Meyer Sport. Her choral education books are published by Hal Leonard Corporation and Heritage Music Press. Other works appear at Prime Number Magazine, River Teeth, Wisconsin Public Radio, CHEAP POP, Brevity blog, and elsewhere. Find out more at NancyJorgensen.weebly.com
Featured image courtesy the poet.
