A Wild Coexistence

A hammock, a hot day, a leaf adrift,
I list, loving this warp-weft resistance,
the wafts that buffet a butterfly's lift;
the subtle tokens we tack our existence,
enveloped, vaulted sky and grassy sea;
suspended, forest core to urban fringe.
A heron lands on quay, his bended tree;
nearby boggy pond, waterfowl still binge.
Echoes persist of habitat's pardon.
I hear the hum of traffic over hill,
phantom footfalls native to this garden,
caring to keep these legacies we kill;
content we cohabit woodlands and lawn,
wildness as vital as our next day's dawn.

copyright Helga Ross 2004