d’Verse Poetics; Are You Listening?

It’s Tuesday Poetics at d’Verse Pub for Poets. Today’s host, Merril, would have us write a poem in any style that includes at least two titles from a list of podcast titles: Articles of Interest: American Ivy, I Was Never There, Legacy of Speed, Not Lost, Pivot, Reveal: After Ayotzinapa, Rumble Strip, Serial, This American Life, Ghost in the Burbs. Go to the Pub to find out more. Once there you can link in with your poem and read others.

Must be my background but my first reaction to the first title was horticultural; my interest in the article was because I thought (correctly) that ivy is an invasive import to our shores. Hmm…

Non-Indigenous: Hedera helix, by D. Avery

Articles of interest?

American ivy, read up on that,

wrap your head around hedera.

What?

That’s right!

There is no Hedera americanus

just common ivy, English ivy,

brought, bought, washed up

transplanted

adaptable, hardy.

An invasive the horticulturists say.

In this American life it is the ghost in the burbs

a serial creeper

outliving occupants of houses

outliving houses, destroying houses

propping up walls that crumble beneath its cover.

It clings;

mature trees succumb to its steady onslaught

topple under the weight

of this evergreen vine from Europe.

In this American life it is out of control

hard to eradicate;

though it lacks kudzu’s legacy of speed

it creeps crawls and spirals

grows over ground, up over and around,

crowding out what was.

Still, native elders teach their grandchildren

how to plant their ancient seeds

tend their revered forests;

cultivate hope that all is not lost.