Frog Puddle
There is a rut in the road that has been wet all summer—sometimes it is filled with murky water three or four inches deep, sometimes …
Branch and Tree
For months I have been walking past an oak on the hill path, looking up among the tops of spruces to search vainly for the …
A Jump on Fall
Amidst an abundance of green, a few russet leaves wave languidly. I think about how difficult it is not to anticipate, to be in the …
Old Can
I find the aged remnants of human life compelling. Surrounded by trees thirty feet tall, the rusted can appears on a path I am sure …
Accident
The side of the car has been ripped open. Still sitting upright in the back seat, a body is covered with what looks like …
Babies
We find them by the side of the road and spend twenty minutes waiting. When their mother doesn’t appear, we try the cell phone to …
Rock Game
The dog plays a game with rocks and water. It is her favourite game, and involves the humans throwing endless stones—not too big and not …
Crazy with Green
In the clearing by the pond I am surprised by lupines, planted here by an unknown hand. In the winter we walked over this place …
Quarter Note
My daughter made me this notebook cover when I first started writing The Madrigal. It has been filled with several years’ worth of book notes …
Blue
It has been raining hard for weeks. The ground is sodden, the million colours of green running rampant: wildflowers, weeds, brambles, ferns, leaves, needles. We …