Rootstrong

by Bear Putnam

When the onslaught
comes fierce
hurts like assassins bullets
legion and flying
before the storm-

When death
is in his season
stalking the weary world
and the pale and baleful eye
turns to me-

When the stars themselves
are misaligned
and ill fortunes gather
and plot together
in dark covens-

When even gravity
becomes too much
to bear
and my bones cry out
aching-

I will not break
not I

But as is taught
by willows
I will drink in wisdom
like water
and bend
​

Middle aged, and happy to have survived youth, Bear lives behind the Zion Curtain in Salt Lake City, Utah, where he spends his time looking under rocks for the scraps of poetry left by the comings and goings of the world.
​

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