To All Appearances A Lady - University of British Columbia

G o h P o h S e n g
Hornby Island
(for Billy Little, who shared loved spots
and fond friends)
Here in the headland by Down's Point
where you cast dreams to rise
synchronous with eagles and gulls,
all make-believe, egocentric,
fully committed, near to fanatical,
or else aim true to roam deep
with Leviathan in the ocean's mind,
free from perplexities and profundities
such as binds the scheduled self.
Here is the arbutus grove
whose trunk and branches tighten
like nerves, twisted witnesses,
misshapened victims of shapely winds
which blow in always unseen,
sweet from the south
or coming home cold from the north,
from every direction
with the prevailing force of nature.
Wish I could emulate the arbutus,
slough off my thin skin as easily
as these native trees their bark,
from abrasion, disdain or design,
unveiling the bare beauty
of strong, hard wood beneath.
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