La Crosse River

"My heart has always been serene and lazy
like peaceful Green Creek." – Wang Wei, "Green Creek"












Why not take the autumn trail along the river
instead of the path through dying marsh?

The soft banks fold down to the beach
as we slide with boots on our hands and knees.

The hawk above must gain a chuckle as we fall
into the soft sand bar just by the length of our toes.

The water is brown; a log pile black by shadow.
In our heart is the old farmer who used to plow

across the stream where now the old oaks nothing
but tangles of lowly buckthorn and bittersweet.