Concrete Causeway, A Poem by Gregory Itzin

CONCRETE CAUSEWAY
The LA River Basin

Yes, I could be in Wyoming,
Or Montana, doncha know,
But I'm in California, L.A. River,
Watch it flow.
On days when rain comes pouring down
It's swollen, turgid, roiling,
It carries everything with it,
It is dangerous in its boiling,
And folks get fooled and wander in
And swirl and spin and die,
Los Angelenos wring their hands,
Cry ""havoc"". Wonder why...?
On other days it's languid,
It moves steadily downstream...
The silt it settles, river clear,
It seems pristine and clean.
Cranes and cormorants, ducks and geese,
Herons move with stately ease,
I walk along, attempt to tease
Some quiet, large, a river peace.
I see fish along the bottom,
Darting, gliding, poised, and still,
Hiding from our human will;
Aimed to detect, see, into their space.

A concrete waterway, doing an
Imitation of a River...
A concrete construct is L.A.,
Doing its water-stealing imitation
Of a verdant landscape.
Beckoning to the unwary, the unsuspecting,
The easily fooled..."