The ground is still rocky
and older than we know
with glass shovels
we say we’ll dig
it’s dangerous to break the ground
in that way
some new tool
we must find it
for our children
or become it for them
or leave them
to either task

The animals here are frightening
not for the color of their fur
nor the points of their teeth
it’s because of what frightens them

The painter is monochromatic
Who fears two colors
too close to one another
we should mix them I think

And that wheel
that has not only known
Southern states
May finally lose tread
We’ll hear it less
Then one day perhaps
it will not travel any longer

–Benjamin Del Shreve