All Upon a River Shore

White birds like bleached crows

Ride cow backs in this place

Visible from the river

Wild turkeys in single school boy file

Amble in the gravel, the gravel beach

On the slow side of the water

Iridescent reptiles bask in river sun

Women, golden skinned, smiles like moon sliver

Watch and bathe in glassy gliding water

“How may I reach this spot,

What road, which highway, which turning?

And I look at him and weep

Only from the river

Only from the river

Can these places be found.

Reviews

[h d e rushin]

when John Lee Hooker yelled "Boom, boom, boom, boom" you never once thought of anything but the
Mississippi Delta. The reason being, why would a person born in the city say a thing such as that.
You may as well have written Trussville, Alabama in distemper where the landscape and the
rivers edge prepares it's own ground for painting. And any poem titled "All Upon a River Shore"
is an invitation to something extremely careful and water fed.

Here you show your tremendous skill as a poet. Not short or long, not far off or spatial,
just the many relationships of 'right now'//well done...dana

[Delmar Cooper]

With the exception of a single word uttered to me forty years ago this is perhaps the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me.

[Dhara_Ditzy Kat]

You have to get there only from the river! There was something deeper I felt here. Like a critical crossing to reach a better place.
The imagery in this poem was very refreshing and I enjoyed this read!

[Delmar Cooper]

Thanks for reading. The river is more a state of being than being in a place. From the river you can see all, something like watching the world from the windows of a train.

[Great Aunt Astri]

The 'river' is a great concept. And I love your idea of actually being in the river to see these wondrous things. I think the line 'And I look at him and weep' might mean that the poet knows that if he goes into the river, he might not come back. The metaphor of having to enter the river, reminds me of the phrase 'the grass is greener on the other side'. This is a very thought-provoking poem, beautifully written, and I shall spend some time today pondering on it.

[Chris Shaw]

Out of reach. Segregation came to mind when reading this poem. I felt it and understood the weeping. Strong imagery and emotion coming through. Thank you.

[Delmar Cooper]

"Out of reach. Segregation came to mind when reading this poem"
Thanks for your thoughtful comment. Segregation, in the broad Webster's sense of the word applies well. A dry man can not truly understand the river or the ocean, the outsider always has a pinched perspective.

[Les]

Delmar,

currently in the UK we are coming to a spell of weather that has blown in straight from Siberia. But I could almost feel the sun on my back as I read this. Such a tonic. Good job!

[Delmar Cooper]

Thank you for reading Les. I visited London with my family one March. We all bought new coats on that visit. Chilly place.

[red77]

This is good as well, with that nice 'cri de coeur' taking it to another level at the end.

[Cherrie Palmer]

Your wordscape was a true delight

[Delmar Cooper]

Thanks for your kind words.

[Cherrie Palmer]

I love life on the river. It is its own brand of beauty.

[Delmar Cooper]

I once worked on a river and I would tell friends about something I'd seen.
When they asked where that was I could not answer - it was from the river I saw every bridge I could not see all the river from any bridge. Sounds strange but you have to be in the river to see the river.

[barleygirl]

WOW! I love the originality of your piece! I started out thinking we were on a river in Africa, but then things got a little muddled along the way, & finally I figured it could be any river anywhere! It's just a novel idea to take us on a little spin to see the various creatures, trying to guess where this is . . . and I agree, rivers attract life & gatherings! (((HUGS))) Fondly, Margie

[Delmar Cooper]

Thanks for the hug, I was completely out of hugs.

[JayceeC]

I read several of your pieces before settling on this one, I think mainly because the picture you paint is one that is familiar to me. Although you may have and one river in mind, there are hundreds of such rivers in the south. The line "And I look at him and weep" jumps out at me, mainly because it almost feels out of place, or the weeping is a bit strong for the first emotion actually entered in response to such an innocuous question. It actually disturbed me enough that I stopped and reread several times, and although the purpose seems to be to instill a sense of deep longing, I think that you do it without the need for this line. I like it much better when I deleted it from the poem entirely as I read. The repetition of the next line says it all for you. Still it is a beautiful poem with carefully crafted images. ~jan

[Delmar Cooper]

Yeah, "weep" is pretty wimpy. Perhaps if the narrator felt scorn for the question rather than pity, but who knows? And sure, just about any river will work, some may not have cowbirds and shiny reptiles but those are just river glitter anyway. Thank you for reviewing, I've read several of your comments and you give good edit.

[JayceeC]

Thank you. I try to give helpful advice. the kind I would want to receive on my own work. Weep is just not the tone I see here...anyway it's jut my opinion, but only you know your intent.

[Woody]

I made the mistake of reading a few reviews and end up with nothing to add except love it. great description and flow. stunning word choice.

[Delmar Cooper]

Thanks for your kind words Woody. Many thanks.