“In the Clearing” by Devon Balwit

November 21, 2024Posted by

Zaubererturm by Jennifer S. Lange, abstract illustration of a dark gray tower in the woods

Image: “Zaubererturm” by Jennifer S. Lange. “In the Clearing” was written by Devon Balwit for Rattle’s Ekphrastic Challenge, October 2024, and selected as the Artist’s Choice.

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Devon Balwit

IN THE CLEARING

No longer youthful, my skin crepes
walls, windows, and doors. Cracked,
I go mossy. The weather enters. Memories
wheel and alight in flocks. Passersby assume
I am lonely. I am anything
but. In the gnarled shadows, hosts
clamor: youngest sons prepare
for battle; widows sniff for mushrooms.
What some call grey, I call mother
of pearl—the full moon polishing the sky.
That screech is an owl or a board pried
from a window. Already, the kindling
catches as the curious lean in.
I make a space for story.
 

—from Ekphrastic Challenge
October 2024, Artist’s Choice

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Comment from the artist, Jennifer S. Lange: “I chose the poem ‘In the Clearing’ because, while it is like some other poems entered that use the tower as a person, this one spoke in first person and spoke well, seeing things from a tower’s perspective. I particularly liked the lines about the tower not being alone despite people assuming it to be, and the definition of grey being really mother of pearl—the ability to differ a great mass of small detail is a skill people seem to be losing, and I am glad about any reminder to look more closely. The most delightful however I found the last line, ‘I make a space for story,’ which to me as an illustrator is the best thing anybody can say about my images—weave a story, tell yourself what’s going on, interpret, play with it, it’s yours now.”

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