The Red Maple Tree
Homage to a poem so much depends upon.
so little ends beneath a red maple's spring leaves grazed with wind rushing above maroon pine straw
From Farm Work to Yard Work
This poem is inspired in part by, and is written as a homage, to “The Red Wheelbarrow” by William Carlos Williams.
I remember the first time I read “The Red Wheelbarrow” in 11th grade English in high school: I thought it was dumb. Truth is….I was taking the poem at literal value, and acting how I thought I was supposed to act about silly things like poetry.
However, this poem stuck with me because of the image of the red wheel barrow, left in the rain, beside the white chickens who lived and worked with the owner, producing eggs for sustenance. The story behind it captured me.
The rest of the inspiration for this poem came from seeing a red maple in a neighbors yard, with fresh reddish brown (maroon) pine straw beneath it. Wanting to continue to stretch myself and write in new styles, I immediately thought of “The Red Wheelbarrow”.
The poem also tells a story of work, but of vanity, not sustenance. Living chickens that provided food for life, as opposed to dead pine needles that didn’t really offer much value when alive.
Perhaps there is a direct literary analogy to go along with it too. After all, what I wrote is a shadow of something better.
Whatever the case, as poets, our writing is built upon the work the came before us through influences and inspiration, much like my neighbor’s red maple tree is landscaping in a subdivision built upon farm and forest land that provided sustenance for people that came before us.
So much depends upon…
Such a good poem.
The Red Wheelbarrow
By William Carlos Williams (1883–1963), public domain.
so much depends upon a red wheel barrow glazed with rain water beside the white chickens
Ecclesiastes 2:11 NIV
Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.