Happy Columbus Day from David Feela

10 Oct Happy Columbus Day from David Feela

By David Feela

(ed. note: David Feela makes a wry comment about our penchant for naming things, days, places for ourselves, our friends or our heroes. Happy Columbus Day.)

You-Are-Here Pass

We’ve named the mountain passes,
fastened brass plaques where we stop
and sigh, but nothing in the natural world
remembers its name.

The wilderness answers to its own
wide spirit, counts any moment
like starlight that arrives unburdened
by the calculations of time.

“You are here” says a dot
on the map I unfold.
“You are not” says the rock
where I plant my foot.

David is a Colorado poet who resides in Arriola, Colorado, a small rural community north of Cortez. Recently retired from a 27-year teaching gig, David was a former “Colorado Voice” for the Denver Post. He worked for over a decade as a contributing editor and columnist at Inside/Outside Southwest magazine and now contributes occasional pieces to High Country News and writes a monthly piece for the Four Corners Free Press. David's words have appeared in hundreds of regional and national publications. His first full-length book of poetry, The Home Atlas, is now available.