Towards the end of our trip this week, we stopped by Delta Ponds, a patch of wetlands near where Ani’s family lives.
The lyric sequence below, inspired by the sights and sounds of the walk, is shared as a sort of thank you to the travel gods.
Delta Ponds – Jose Angel Araguz
Dragonflies rising
from the grass, lighting on
a tall, sun-bleached reed.
*
Black snake slithers through the rocks,
mirrored by its yellow stripe.
*
The sound of heron
wings – turning the page so fast,
all words fall away.
*
The turtle sunning mid-pond:
so far, just a blot of ink.
*
Dust across my feet
and sandals, each step taken
stirs and covers me.
*
The slow step of the heron:
water still, and still again.
*
She says the heron’s
the color of my favorite
shirt as it flies off.
*
Holding my breath through a cloud
of gnats, words bat from all sides.
*
Heron’s neck – from “S”
to straight – how does one learn to
write, then stand apart?
Happy heroning!
Jose
The Friday Influence 
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