The jolt preceded just the week before
and that quake was No Big Deal.
Irene, then Lee, cut through
each Catskill hollow and hamlet –
where ancient streams flow and pass.
Now bold, roaring rivers of mud
scrape away trees, bridges, buildings.
The Simple details of life
are Urgent or Not.
Hands in her pockets,
the waitress said with dignity,
“We were So Lucky, we only lost a car,
and just the downstairs flooded.”
While visiting my sister in Phoenicia, NY, we witnessed the flooding devastation inflicted by hurricanes Irene and Lee. The last line of the poem was uttered by our waitress as we sat at the counter of the Sun Frost café located somewhere between Woodstock and Bearsville. We found that the most current flooding news was always at the diners and cafés. It was heartwarming to see such generosity and compassion – people who weren’t totally wiped out eagerly offered whatever they had left to others – furniture, clothes, vehicles.
The words are taken from Wordle #21 from this week’s Sunday Whirl.
I’m in PA by the NY border, so I know about that terrible flooding. My area was spare this time. Great poem too
Glad to hear you are safe and not affected by the flooding. And thanks for taking the time to read my poem.
Flooding is frightening, I can’t even imagine the helplessness. Cut through each Catskill hollow and hamlet is my favorite bit of phrasing. Beautiful use of the words.