Surrounded by Autumn's finery, Larew joined poets Patti Ross and Naomi Ayala at a Write the Land outdoor reading in Woodstock, Maryland (USA) on Sunday, October 227, 2024. Held in conjunction with NatureCulture (NatureCulture), the event was hosted by the Howard County Nature Conservancy (Homepage - Howard County Conservancy and the Howard County Poetry and Literature Society (HoCoPoLitSo « Let there be lit.).
Thanks to all of those who joined the afternoon's fine, crisp colors in the amphitheater. And thanks to Susan Hobby of the Nature Conservancy, Tara Hart of HoCoPoLitSo and Lis McLoughlin of NatureCulture for organizing the gathering.
Here's a poem that Larew read at the event.
LIFE WITH A CANDLE
I want to marry this field
Truly and simply
With its wings curving the corners
And its smoothness stunning my knees
All of my heart is here far around me
And there’s humming and leaning -
Even the trifling breeze
I want this field for my living
To vow to its edges
That nothing comes true
Without greening
Nothing seems as bold as my longings
Except sloping
Nothing wakes on my shoulder
But rustling
I hope the strangest hopes in this field
Ever bending
From here
I know that this much of my all is clear -
Before there were hills
Or even eyes to up over
There was a distance beyond us
A long far away that can never come near
There was wishing
I want to carry this field
In my arms
By its being
To a maybe that’s certain
So our future can flicker on grasses
And our children will wave from the clouds.
Photo by Stephen Cherry.
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