Monday, November 12, 2012

Simon J. Ortiz: Small Things Today

Small Things Today
 at my Hesperus Camp

 
Had a tortilla with some honey
at midafternoon.  It was good.
Wished I had some chili.

Smell of apples, wet fields;
in back of the blue tent
is a box of last season's
Animas Valley apples; soon,
it will be another Fall.

Wind blows, shakes the tarp,
water falls to the ground.
The sound of water splashing.

Several hours ago, watched
a woodpecker watching me.
We both moved our heads
with funny jerks.

Rex and his sad, dog eyes.

Somebody looking around in a field,
looking for lost things.

Notice bean sprouts growing.
They're very pale and nude.

Rex doesn't like chicken livers,
but gizzards are okay.

-- Simon J. Ortiz --
from Woven Stone


Small things, little things, all sorts of unconnected things, but now linked together. I wonder how many of these small things he would have noticed if someone else had been there with him.  Sometimes others are a distraction.


2 comments:

  1. I LOVE this! AND the commentary! (But maybe he would have noticed more and said less?)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Crystal,

    Possibly. But in my experience, being with others is a distraction, which may be more a personal idiosyncrasy than something common to many people.

    Thanks for stopping by and commenting.

    ReplyDelete