Smokey Mountain Trail by Megan Elmendorf

Smokey Mountain Trail

by Megan Elmendorf

As I follow the footsteps of those now gone,

A mournful echo creeps in upon me,

While a cool mist drifts across the purple dawn

And the perceptive music of nature makes a soft plea.

Rushing water over bulky black boulders

Is thunder crashing through the mountains.

The world twirling on Atlas' shoulders.

Spins whirling rivers and fountains. ~

Dancing shadows across a velvet carpet of moss,

And the cries of grinding pebbles underfoot,

Are secrets of old that are not lost;

With a history that is black as soot.~

I find my body in the rolling blue ridges:

Thick roots are my backbone

Arteries—rivers running under bridges

Nature is my beating heart encased in a green throne.

Mysterious pathways branch away;

Entwining roots gather 'round trees;

With jagged cliffs towering grey;

And whispers of old sing in the breeze.