trophies

By Reservation Only

At Bayou Pierre
a short trek through
a woody thicket
brings you to
a petite river where
millenia-old rock
guides the water and
gives smooth surface
to those who would bask
in the sun and swim
in the pool formed there

At Tibbee Creek
a wooden bridge
with iron frame
warns travellers of
its fragility
but rewards them
for walking onto
its planks, giving view
of a river’s bend
where trains pass by
just a bit downstream.
It's where angels take
their smoke breaks

At Fort Hill
you’ll find the highest
view of the Mississippi
where at midnight
breezes brush shoulders
and the harbor lights below
are perfect lanterns
to give the stars a better glimpse
of lovers on the grass

At Owens Falls
the signs will lead
you over a creek and down
to watch that same water
fall, and you can rinse
in its cool shower
or sneak into the stony shade
and steal kisses from
behind a curtain poured.

I'll be revising this over the next day or so, but these places and others like them are why I don't mind Mississippi. I could (and should I suppose) tell dozens of stories from each setting, but won't yet for whatever reason. Just thought I'd share the locales.