Poetry: A Good Hike

June 11, 2019 by Sam Hamer

A Good Hike

We hike with him a rough and unmarked trail,
A park for all ordained as common ground,
Our father, boots laced, narrow brim pulled low,
Pursuing this craggy, awkward approach,
A slanted pass where rocks release, divide,
Tons tilting, tumbling, rolling reckless down—
All are struck from the same soft stone, each one
A new-veined version of the deep earth’s ore.
At length, a doubting glance, but then at last
A bend, a verge, a pounding breath, we see
A sweep of sunlit sky that stretches wide
To distant vales with bright converging streams.
Then down this more forgiving slope we course
To river’s edge to soak our swollen feet.

[Photo by Clarisse Meyer on Unsplash]