Poetry by Stephen J Cribari
Launched with a shove (Do you remember the day?)
One by one on sleds we sailed away
In a wild flying descent of the frozen hill
Then gathered by a snow mobile until
A few kids at a time we were hauled uphill
But you, when your turn came, you had to tease
Your sled beyond the familiar way. Unchecked
You sped head first into the sun and the trees
But too fast -! This time too fast. You wrecked
Among the trees where snow hid the rocks and leaves.
I watched you struggle upright in the snow,
Collect yourself, and determined turn to go
Back uphill hauling your sled behind.
And I watched you watch us watching you: you saw
The way we stared at you – your parents, friends –
Squinting towards you into the sun snow blind.
Then you turned as you’d never turned before,
Turned and looked about you with a raw
Look of expectation, blind to us
As if drawn toward something endless. Thus
You turned, the child the man, who comprehends
That now is when he begins, or when he ends.
Stephen J Cribari’s poetry and plays have been performed in the United States and abroad. He resides in Minneapolis, Minnesota. His poetry has been published recently in Patterson Literary Review and The Bluebird Word. Still Life (2020) and Delayed en Route (2022) are published by Lothrop Street Press.
