Minter Bridge Road to Burkhalter Lane
Alpaca farms dot the hilly terrain, baby llamas
Wear thick curly fur, until the shears come
They look really funny when the fur is all gone
From the top of Chehalem, a significant drop down
Now into Newberg a quaint little town
Velvet moss cloaks the ivy in emerald green
Entwined through a forest of Juniper trees
On to Spirit Mountain, Grand Rhonde’s old legend
Where old spirits dwell, their holiness beckons
It’s best to go slow in a horse powered engine, that
Would have impressed the Pony Express, the
Ghosts of Rogue River's tribes of Kalapuya
Smoking peace pipes in wigwams
On the banks of Nestucca
KA/ 2003
Note: A place where you can truly feel the old spirits dwell. Kalapuya (Calapooya) means “wealthy way of life”. A semi-nomadic people who lived in permanent winter villages (near present day Portland, Oregon) and traded with their neighbors of Northern California, Oregon Coast and Columbia River tribes.
Categories:
calapooya, environment, spiritual,
Form: Free verse