L.A. RIVER
I like how the mallard ducklings
goofy and weak
waddle up the cement incline
then slide into this runoff
of lawn sprinklers and car washes
and how the great blue heron
seems to be teleported here
from the Jurassic
to look for extinct species of fish
but mostly I like the way
the little birds
fly in and out of the barbed wire
with only a smear of water
to keep them singing
—from Rattle #52, Summer 2016
Tribute to Angelenos
__________
Jack Cooper: “As one soul in this city, I am moved by its stories and driven by its fury. I am an Angeleno poet not because I live here but because I suffer L.A.’s sadness and celebrate its accomplishments, because I struggle to find who I am, what is mine and where I belong in this city of angels and devils and aliens, real and imagined, in this city, like every city, where life is as much a shared experience as it is our very own. Poetry helps.” (website)
