Terrie Leigh
Relf, US
Revisiting the
Washington St. Bridge, 2008
She is riding in a
car stuck
in late afternoon traffic
beneath the blue suspension
bridge, remembering how she
once stood at its edge, gripped
railing safely hinged to concrete
unable to step onto its well-worn
path to read Lao Tzu's sand-etched
quotes, unable to gaze below. . .
but now, undisturbed by the rise
and fall of her breath, oh the
sweet, sweet sound of ten-
thousand cranes as they take
wing, soar skyward, skyward.
An earlier version
of the poem appeared in PSH, 2003.
