A Form of Staying

written By

Frost arrives without apology.
The pine stands as sentinel.
No bloom,
no color left to lose.
It asks for nothing,
draws no gaze.

Snow gathers where it pleases,
a white cloak
laid across the sleepy earth.

Branches arch;
a quiet bridge between seasons,
outstretched fingers
bearing winter’s weight.

Sparrows live through cold still,
each a small note held in the hush.
No pleading,
no display.

Even dusk passes without demand,
a veil slipping
over day’s bright face.

Abiding asks nothing.
Persistence
is a form of staying.

 

  • Michael J. Kolb is a poet and a professor of archaeology based in Colorado. He writes across disciplinary thresholds, exploring nature, memory, commemoration, and illness, asking what we carry, and what we leave behind. His work appears or is forthcoming in Third Wednesday, Sky Island Journal, Eunoia Review, Defenestration, Speckled Trout, and Moss Piglet among others. He is the author of Making Sense of Monuments (Routledge 2020).

    View all posts

Share this:

Comments are closed.

Up ↑