Tornado of Hope

Feeling for the people caught in the tornados.

What can a poet do in a tornado?
Cling to an ethereal tree
while the howling winds of an angry planet
rip the words from their hearts?
From their lives?
A tree whose roots were planted
in lands where seeds have grown for ages
in their hearts.
In their lives.
Lives lost in the Heartland.

No!

A poet climbs an ethereal tree.
Planting their feet on the roots of cohesion
ascending the branches of hope
to make tangible a crown of support.
To bear witness!
As the flags of survival are instilled.
Red in a pool of brotherhood.
White in the care of love.
Blue in the protection of response.
Proudly writing the American song!

A poet descends a material tree.
Calming the maelstrom of fear
with words of truth and understanding,
yet cry a warning to the future...

The Earth knows not what it does
It can only be what it is.
What it has become.

2021

Author's Note

I was reviewing with Patricia. She said she is in Illinois and mentioned the storms. After I asked if she was ok I was going to make a funny. Does a poet cling to an ethereal tree in a tornado? She deleted her profile before I could ask. Then I saw the news last night and the utter destruction. Then this poem came out of me. I had to ask Billigami to step out. Go watch a movie or something. It's hard to watch a movie when you have a poem boiling in your brain. I worked really hard on this poem. I was determined that there be no alliteration or assonance. No rhyme. No structure.(a little punctuation for dramatic purposes) No nothing, not even words. But it had to be written. By chance the first two stanza are 10 lines. Balance.

Reviews

[Betty Hermelee]

A moment in time, a horrifying moment, but nature is not to blame....she knows not what she is doing...destroying life...and property....and she will strike again.
where does the poet enter the scene? the poet can embellish what he sees that is true; he can support the truth...."he can bear witness"
Nice write W.
Best, B

[William Michael Reeves]

This is one of those poems that will always be current, unfortunately. There is no anger management class for our planet. And her anger may be justified by our mismanagement of her. We are trying though. Thanks B

[Neville]

I am sure those moments will never be forgot .. but these fine words assembled here, sure reinforce the point ..

[William Michael Reeves]

Easy for us who only know the destruction by way of the news to forget. Writing about it helps me feel it. Remember it. Thank you

[Coyote Poetry]

Powerful and worthwhile thoughts shared in the poetry William.
"The Earth knows not what it does
It can only be what it is.
What it has become"
The above lines. Hard and cold truth. Thank you for sharing the outstanding poetry.
Coyote

[William Michael Reeves]

Well put. Hard and cold truth. No mercy in nature. Seems eventually a tornado is going to hit everywhere in the middle of the country if this keeps up. Thanks Coyote

[Coyote Poetry]

You are right and you are welcome.

[Miss Sharon]

(A poet climbs an ethereal tree. Planting their feet on the roots of cohesion ascending the branches of hope
to make tangible a crown of support.) Bravo! Well said...well written from start to finish! ~Sharon

[William Michael Reeves]

Thank you Miss. Share on! I love to hear it. But no love for what I hear on the news as the planet gets angrier and angrier. The pointless death. Seems to be here, there and everywhere. So is hope and love! Whew! What would we do....

[Cherrie Palmer]

I lived in Oklahoma from 1971 till 2014 and have seen it all. Lives shattered, lives lost and the blank stare that goes with.
The craziest thing I ever seen was after a tornado we found a dead cow in a tree.

[William Michael Reeves]

That's the thing about trees and tornados. They catch in their strength. Some stronger than tornados. Images of cars completely wrapped around a tree like a sleeve on a coffee cup. Houses leveled but a vase still sits right where it was in the destruction. But for trees, where are we?

[Cherrie Palmer]

Ya know a 🌴 palm tree when bent-over by the wind is able to push its roots deeper for a greater hold.
Pretty amazing and poetic.

[William Michael Reeves]

That is a good idea. And plants are known to feel. React to energy around them. I think you're like me. Hear a poem in everything. The sonnet I'm writing now is about the dullest thing imaginable. That was my challenge. Write about a rock.

[KATHY SUE SILLS]

This was awesome! The imagery just wow! Poet cannot control their muse; it shows out like a tornado! Excellent poem!

[William Michael Reeves]

Thanks. Not sure what state MS is but I'm guessing tornados are in your area. Glad I don't get closer to them than what I see on the news. But that's enough to feel for people devastated by them.

[KATHY SUE SILLS]

My pleasure! We had tornados in Mississippi last week! Thank goodness not near where we live!

[William Michael Reeves]

Mississippi. That's what I thought. And where the tornados were. Glad to hear you're safe...at least until the atmosphere is just one big tornado!

[KATHY SUE SILLS]

Thanks Bill! I hate bad weather!

[Patricia]

Thank you for the mention and your sincere concern is so obviously seen in this wonderful poem. We were very fortunate to not get hit by the tornadoes, they were more down state from me but the outcome was terrifying and many lives lost and many injured. Illinois has tornadoes all year long even in the winter, this is something we live with and although we have a great warning system it isn't always enough time when nature comes calling. We are a strong people here, determined and care for our own with unbreakable strength but our hearts are broken. We here in Illinois thank you for your poetry, it is beautiful! And yes I am back here on WritersCafe after a small argument with myself over my writing and I was talked into getting back to it , so this is me getting back to it. HUGS to you my friend!

[William Michael Reeves]

I changed the word blood to brotherhood. Red pool days enough about blood. Not sure why that didn't come to me yesterday. I usually let a poem 'cool' but the current event of it rushed me. I changed the word does to can in the first line as well.

[JE Falcon]

A very well-done poem, too bad we can't control nature as we do words. --- Hmm, then who would decide what kind of days we would have? :)

[William Michael Reeves]

According to all the sci-fi movies I watch we should be able to control our climate. Or we better learn so when we have to leave this one we'll be on it. I bet Elon Musk is working on that as we write. Thanks JE

[JE Falcon]

I think so too. Actually, I was thinking of a story where they jet off to another planet with all the really smart people, and they never come back.

[Einstein Noodle]

I love this! It's patriotic, inspiring and i really like the thought that nature does what it does .. absolutely .. i may step a bit off the platform but ... to imagine we can control the "weather change" thing is absurd in the book of E. ;) If one looks back at the ten year average for tornadoes we are actually behind the norm .. anyway .. great write on a poets viewpoint .. love the metaphor work with the tree .. climbing and the branches of hope etc. ... Americans do raise up to help during such tragedies ... it's what we are all about .. our hearts go out to those who lost so much in the blink of an eye ... it can happen anywhere anytime .. causes my thoughts to turn to God the Creator in gratitude one moment to the next. Very inspiring write .. interesting perspective naming your speaker as yourself ... the poet! with a poets heart :)
E.

[William Michael Reeves]

That means a lot to me that you recognize my metaphors. We live, breathe and write them and knowing that you're studying all that makes the 'work' of it worthwhile. You are wrong on one point. I was careful to make sure the speaker was all poets. Any poet. A poet each stanza starts and always their feet and their everything. Changed a few things to keep that going.

[Einstein Noodle]

understood my friend .. i assumed i guess .. it has the feel of 1st person narrator .. it's clear to be addressing all .. but still you speaking says i ;)

[William Michael Reeves]

I've been thinking lots. Especially when I wrote NO! Who is it telling the tale? The survivors comforted in a poet's words. The responders encouraged by the witness. We are the narrator.

[Einstein Noodle]

passed right over me nog ... a challenge for sure.