Spring Cleaning of a Poem about the Statue of Liberty

 

NOTE:  What kind of spring cleaning do you prefer?  I am partial to spring cleaning of my archived writings.  This week was a good time to dust off and polish a poem which I wrote on July 9, 2014.  My dusting and polishing included adding two stanzas, as well as one line to an existing stanza.  Also, I swept away one word  and replaced it with another in one line while in another line, I polished a verb.  The result of my spring cleaning of a poem shines, I hope, below for my visitors–my WORDWALK house guests.

 

 

To Where Is She Walking?

 

by Alice Jane-Marie Massa

 

 

Who is the statuesque woman

walking over the Appalachian Mountains?

Spotters said she is 111 feet tall.

Trackers found footprints–shoe size 879.

Reporters confirmed that she paused

at Chattanooga’s Lookout Mountain.

Did she see seven states,

did she see the Land of Liberty?

 

Where is she going?

What is her destination?

I heard no new Bartholdi could be found

to clone a second Colossus;

so, Lady Liberty is walking,

walking to the Rio Grande.

 

Will her hand of 16 feet, five inches

wave cool air toward the weary travelers,

will she wave “Hello,”

will she raise her torch to light the way,

or will she raise her bold hand to signal “stay”?

 

She left her pedestal in New York Harbor.

At the Rio Grande, will she close the door;

or will the Great Lady open her 42-foot arms

to welcome more?

I hear whispers of

“Come, little children–

ninitos de Guatemala,

Honduras, y El Salvador.”

 

Is her left hand carrying the bronze plaque

on which are inscribed the tender words

of Emma Lazarus?

Is the Colossal Lady saying,

“Come to us”?

 

What will La Dama de la Libertad say?

Has someone prepared for her

a pedestal near the Rio Grande,

or will she become a sentinel upon the wall?

 

Now, reporters say Lady Liberty

arrived at the Rio Grande.

She planted her torch in the hot, dry sand;

then, she brought together her two huge hands

and knelt  down

in awesome prayer.

Her lamentations made us weep:

“Some promises–I cannot keep;

but I care, I care.

My God, I do care.”

 

Lady Liberty, with your colossal spirit,

for whom is your prayer,

for whom do you care?

 

copyright 2018, ajm

 

Best wishes for an amazing month of May,

from the granddaughter of four immigrants,

Alice and Leader Dog Willow

 

May 2, 2018, Wednesday

 

 

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