POETRY

Landers Big Bear Willamette Valley

by Corey Carter

Shook awake.
The ground is moving.

7.3
one dead, two dying.

A lost boy,
Never to see his family again.

Six years old,
Judged unworthy.

What plan is this?
Is it a sign for me?

I lived in that house,
In that room.

Only a year ago,
I slept in that very spot.

Unsatisfied-
It stalks me.

Thrown from my bed, I know
the earth is still hungry.

The new crack in the driveway,
Points to me as its intended target.

Plans to move north,
Are put in motion.

Hiding me between,
Volcanoes and the sea.

Four years of threats,
You try to drown me.

Unable to fight,
My grandmother is lost.

Her ashes spread at the lake,
Where all our loved ones lie.

As time passed.
The loss was too much.

My grandfather gave into his fear.
A good man chose to be with his wife.

As more ashes are spread,
I make my choice.

You have taken so much from me.
It’s time I took it back.

I will not run anymore.
I don’t fear you.

 

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