Chiseled granite cut through by rain, wind,
cormorant bills–
cracks, falling quickly into the surf, destroying
vistas etched through the eons, mocking time
and inevitability–and the photograph
can no longer be taken, the pose
no longer memorable, the explanation
complicated.
Mountain forests ablaze for days
Wildlife scattered, searing embers smolder,
Lingering haze licks the nostrils and sickens what will soon be
New homesteaders, rebirthing the landscape
To one day burn again—and the cycle,
Uncomplicated though it be,
Kills and nourishes—complicating the message
Of why.
Word Play 