Renee Emerson
Poetry
Renee Emerson is the author of the poetry collections Keeping Me Still (Winter Goose Publishing 2014), Threshing Floor (Jacar Press 2016), and Church Ladies (Fernwood Press 2023). She is also the author of the chapbook The Commonplace Misfortunes of Everyday Plants (Belle Point Press), and the middle-grade novel Why Silas Miller Must Learn to Ride a Bike (Wintergoose Publishing 2022). She lives in the Midwest with her husband and five children. www.renee-emerson.com
Every Now and Then the Yard Caught Fire
Of course, my father burned our trash.
We weren’t allowed too near
the rusted-out can, flames licking
the lip, smoke a poison in the air,
a milky-green ghost haunting sky.
Then he drank a beer, stayed nearby.
Only once, that I remember,
did the flames creep up the acres
like a possum to the porch,
with all those pointed teeth.
My sisters and I lugged buckets
til we were sent to our rooms.
Neighbors dragged hoses as far
as they could in self-interest,
in charity. We were told burning is so good
for a yard! It’ll come back better than before.
When the ground cooled,
we walked the scorched grass,
crickets jumping out before us
like ideas that couldn’t quite catch.
“ When bad things happen in life, there are always those well-meaning, annoying people who want to pat you on the head and say ‘It’s really for the best’ or ‘This will make you stronger.’ Sometimes what’s burnt is just burnt. ”