When I Was Young The Silk, by A. R. Ammons

When I was young the silk
of my mind
hard as a peony head […]

Photography Credit: T. Enami, Pilgrim on a Forest Road, 1898-1908
T. Enami, Pilgrim on a Forest Road, 1898-1908

When I was young the silk
of my mind
hard as a peony head
unfurled
and wind bloomed the parachute:

The air-head tugged me
up,
tore my roots loose and drove
high, so high

I want to touch down now
and taste the ground
I want to take in
my silk
and ask where I am
before it is too late to know.

Archie Randolph Ammons, “When I Was Young The Silk,” from The North Carolina Poems, edited by Alex Albright, (N.C. Wesleyan College Press, 1994). From the Parabola Spring issue, 2006, “Coming to our Senses.”

This issue is available to purchase here. If you have enjoyed this piece, consider subscribing.