the dusty track
under our shoes
speaks in a smoky voice
of the grapes

grown here
for so many years
the finch
ducks and dives

so that her reflection
mingles
for a moment
with the long vase like neck

of the snow white egret
dipping leisurely
into the edge of the pond
like a lady at a spa

my gracefulness
looks clumsy
in contrast
to the twirl at the end of the grape leaf

the patience of the stallion
standing mindfully under a tree
the calm of the sky
sewn to the heat of the sun

and you as well
who walk with a lightness
contemplating this transition
out loud

and then speaking in poems
as you describe
how you have been wooed
by the soft light that filters through these green green American trees

copyright – Christina Adler – 1 July 2009 – Windsor, California USA