River of Words: Poetry

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The Levee

The asphalt is rough
Uneven and crude
Rocks piled up against the levee wall
With dirt and small scrubby plants
Hemlock and Horsetail
Struggling to grow
Among the beer cans
and
Plastic Pepsi bottles
On the other side
I see the Pajaro River
It’s that time of year
Spring
when the grass grows
to cover the trash
that is strewn among the Poppies and Vetch
There’s graffiti on the bridge
Tags…in garish, faded colors
and I pretend I don’t see
The blankets and sleeping bags
Dirty and wrinkled
Spread under the bridge
Does someone live there?
What do they do
when the river runs High and Brown?
Flowing like time like brown sand
through the thin neck of an hour glass
The river flows
through a wide path of stone, sand and Mud banks
Carving history
As time flows

Camila Perez, 12
Linscott Charter School
Watsonville, California
Teachers: Linda Cover/Jody Louderback

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