Cabin Fever Compels Me to Bike to the Anacostia River
Today I’m an astronaut. I need to shuttle beyond
the orbit of my block. I launch east from my home
planet: turning left, then right. I cycle through
a few green lights, making sure to stop by the house
with a train-shaped Little Free Library.
Trains also travel to car-free universes.
I discover a Golden Nature Guide to American
wildflowers; its pages smell like milkweed.
I continue down the road, past the old movie theatre,
wondering if the sky was clear on opening night
for Lilies of the Field all those decades ago?
Pretty soon I see the path veering off to the left.
I bike high up on the levee trail, beside the creek
below. The breeze is light. The trail brings me
to the Anacostia, and cormorants roost
on the branches of a river birch tree.
I imagine people returning to swim here once more.
I imagine the mussels under the water’s surface
currently filtering out bacteria and plastic.
I take a deep breath. Circadian and bike—
cycles align in a new constellation.
Are there groundhogs on Jupiter? Do the Pleiades
shine with the fragrance of wisteria? Today’s
mission will not take me more than 10 miles
from my door. And yet, when a cluster
of six-foot-tall, prickly-stemmed musk thistle
seemingly bolts up out of nowhere,
with lime green and fuchsia flower heads
nodding in my direction, I know
I’ve somehow invaded another cosmos.
Love it, Melanie! Thank you for the journey through your neighborhood, and to another cosmos!
Thank you, Linda! 🙂 I’m wondering if there’s a beloved place that you like to visit in your neighborhood (and how does this place draw you closer to God)?
I’ve been amazed at the new things I’m still seeing in nature after so many years of living. Our world can feel like a whole different planet when you start to venture out and pay close attention. I really loved the sensory details you shared here and was especially drawn to the lines about aroma: “its pages smell like milkweed” and “Do the Pleiades shine with the fragrance of wisteria?” Thanks for that surprising juxtaposition!
Thank you, Darcy! 🙂 Yes, the fragrances of a new place and experience can really abide in our bodies in the best possible ways, can’t they? I’m glad you like the line about the Pleiades and wisteria–I was aiming for the poetic technique of synesthesia here, which is one I’m coming to love. As you named it, it’s the technique of juxtaposing senses (i.e. mixing sight and scent together), and I agree that it can help to open up surprising images and connections :). I’d love to hear about any other instances of synesthesia that you’ve read/experienced/written :).
Melanie, I really enjoyed the playfulness of this poem and the divergent thinking that leads to such interesting trails!
Thank you so much, Jennifer! I love having this trail so close to my home. Do you have any trails/routes that elicit wonder for you on a regular basis? If so, what are they like? 🙂