James River Valley

From opposing squeeze of strata The meeting memories of Mesozoic Aprils Are forced to dream between a cleft Near the dark, swelling moss That sweats beneath the laurel's shade. High in the weary Allegenies Jackson and Cowpasture braid the quicksilver Tightly in their arms, Giving force to the plunge of gravity, Exacting cold tributes for their own. Until, their work complete, slopes relax In loblolly forests, then sandy plains; While their daughter sails along the Roads of Hampton, Fingering a tangle of nervous crabs, Deaf to the whispering debris of shattered cla m shells.