L'aura del Campo

Bill's garden song

Bill's garden song

         for Bill Baker

tiny hearts in tiny rows
children in my garden grow
pumpkin, parsley, peppers, peas
none as precious as are these

tiny ears and tiny nose
in my garden children grow
carrots, cabbage, collards, corn
aren't you glad that they were born

tiny arms and tiny legs
in my garden children beg
lift them up and hold them high
rhubarb, rutabaga, rye.

tiny cheeks and tiny chins
make fun faces, see them grin
in my garden children squeak
lettuce, lentils, limas, leeks

children sleep from garden thrills
daisies, dandelions, dill
this is how the rhyme must go
this is how all stories close.

© Kåre Enga 1999 [156] (revised 2010-07-26)

This was written shortly after a trip to Michigan in 1999 when I met Keith Hayes and Bill Baker of Illinois and I began to write. I'd set it aside as I couldn't make more than two verses work. But... I've grown since then and today looked at it and said... enough! There's one line that annoys me, but so what. I need to find all my poems for and about children to give them to Frances to sort them out.

Read some geology... does that count? How about the news. Got two YA books out of the way. Not in the mood for anything heavy; although, the YA books did push my buttons. Been rereading and editing old poems (some long forgotten, some better forgotten).

60,631