The Sentinel

Poem of the 2012 Niobrara River valley fires, destruction, rebirth, survival

The Sentinel

The fire…
The blackened skeletons crisscross the canyons;
their bare limbs clutching at the brassy sky.
In the midst of the devastation, a single survivor stands.
A lonely sentinel to Nature's baffling selection process.

The healing…
The blackened, charred remains have been
scoured clean by the years of snow, wind, and rain.
The nourished, renewed soil
feeds the seedlings that appear, as if from nowhere.

The regrowth…
The River Road is a drive of stark contrasts.
The lush, green undergrowth flourishes
beneath the smooth, silver skeletons,
with their bare branches clutching at the blue summer sky.

The conclusion…
There is no prejudice in Nature…survive or die…
It’s Nature’s choice...who will flourish and who shall die.
In the midst of the rebirth, the single tree stands.
A hopeful sentinel to Nature's baffling selection process.