virtuoso
02-06-2015, 03:02 PM
The White Willow hovers
at the junction where
creek forks intersect
body and limbs both
a crooked marker
and bleak memorial
to the weary traveler
gnarled bough; serpent's bow
and serpentining post
limbs, dangling spears
with no compass points
silky tread of slender leaves,
wind-swept waves mirroring
frothy undertow,
but a faint warning
etched in the pale bark
with skin flint edge
in gothic letters warns
WATERFALL
at the junction where
creek forks intersect
body and limbs both
a crooked marker
and bleak memorial
to the weary traveler
gnarled bough; serpent's bow
and serpentining post
limbs, dangling spears
with no compass points
silky tread of slender leaves,
wind-swept waves mirroring
frothy undertow,
but a faint warning
etched in the pale bark
with skin flint edge
in gothic letters warns
WATERFALL