a happy new year to all!

lodi marsh lies in a valley of glacial till, fed by springs and seepages. the hills to the west of the site frame the open marsh and sky dramatically. forest and prairie cover the southern knoll. the countryside around lodi is a wonder.

a.

clearing a path

in the valley till—

hawk shriek westward

b.

the cattail forest covers

untold sleepers just waiting

to rouse and rise from the muck

c.

dust-yellow constellations

on pillars of seep and slough

pale sky a mirror of pale ground

announcing the snowstorm’s approach