Order of things
Over barren fields harvested
sits a hawk in patient vigil
top a post, still and observant.
He knows he will at last prevail,
he does not doubt a mouse will come
gleaning grain left behind,
it is what mice do, it is
what he does, it its the order of things.
A walnut tree stands stoic and sure
while steadfast and immovable it is anchored
season after season year after year, it
bears its yield to all who seek, it
gives, asking nothing because it needs nothing.
On this autumn day the road is
stretched out long before me, mail
boxes reveal homes present unseen
where boys with rakes tend burning leaves,
smoke rising through lonely branches
hovering heavy and close to home like
spirits clinging to corporeal frames
mourning the season gone.
The hawk cocks his head and lights from his post
diving decisively, it is what he does,
it is the order of things.
About this poem
Driving around on country roads as I do, I often observe the ordinary things around me. Things that remain while I am the mobile one passing through. I imagine the day to day life of the people who live in these country homes that I can't see tucked away down long dirt driveways.
Submitted by GCTHOMAS on January 19, 2024
- 50 sec read
- 7 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | XXXAXXBC XXDDX BAXXEXXX XEC |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 860 |
Words | 167 |
Stanzas | 4 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 5, 8, 3 |
Translation
Find a translation for this poem in other languages:
Select another language:
- - Select -
- 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
- 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
- Español (Spanish)
- Esperanto (Esperanto)
- 日本語 (Japanese)
- Português (Portuguese)
- Deutsch (German)
- العربية (Arabic)
- Français (French)
- Русский (Russian)
- ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
- 한국어 (Korean)
- עברית (Hebrew)
- Gaeilge (Irish)
- Українська (Ukrainian)
- اردو (Urdu)
- Magyar (Hungarian)
- मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
- Indonesia (Indonesian)
- Italiano (Italian)
- தமிழ் (Tamil)
- Türkçe (Turkish)
- తెలుగు (Telugu)
- ภาษาไทย (Thai)
- Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
- Čeština (Czech)
- Polski (Polish)
- Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
- Românește (Romanian)
- Nederlands (Dutch)
- Ελληνικά (Greek)
- Latinum (Latin)
- Svenska (Swedish)
- Dansk (Danish)
- Suomi (Finnish)
- فارسی (Persian)
- ייִדיש (Yiddish)
- հայերեն (Armenian)
- Norsk (Norwegian)
- English (English)
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Order of things" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 9 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/178916/order-of-things>.
Discuss the poem Order of things with the community...
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In