Wherever we go, the chance for joy, whole orchards of amazement—
one more reason to always travel with our pockets full of exclamation marks,
so we might scatter them for others like apple seeds.
Some will dry out, some will blow away, but some will take root
and grow exuberant groves filled with long thin fruits
that resemble one hand clapping— so much enthusiasm as they flutter back and forth
that although nothing’s heard and though nothing’s really changed,
people everywhere for years to come will swear that the world
is ripe with applause, will fill their own pockets with new seeds to scatter.
Posted by kind permission of the poet. From Naked for Tea (Able Muse Press, 2018). All rights reserved.
Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer
Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer is a poet, teacher, speaker and writing facilitator who co-hosts the Emerging Form podcast on creative process. Her daily audio series, The Poetic Path, is on the Ritual app. Her poems have appeared on A Prairie Home Companion, PBS News Hour,O Magazine, American Life in Poetry, andCarnegie Hall stage. Her most recent poetry collections are All the Honey (Samara Press, 2023) and The Unfolding (Wildhouse Publishing, October 2024).In January, 2024, she became the first poet laureate for Evermore, helping others explore grief, bereavement, wonder and love through poetry. One-word mantra: Adjust.
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