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Two Types of Ibeks

Two Types of Ibeks

The Fare Forward Poetry Competition: First Place

By D.S. Martin

with thanks to David Attenborough & the BBC
 
There are those who believe in resurrection
& those who don’t   (people   that is
I’m talking about people)   & those
rodeo cowgirls   in cliche clothes
untangling lassoes of their own
They lift their eyes toward mountains
Where might their help come from?
It’s unthinkable   to think
of the Athabasca Glacier
dripping down to nothing
though all it needs for rebirth
is a new ice age   hard to imagine
the Egyptians   Incas   & Inuit
inventing the same proofless premise
It’s like the instinct newborn ibeks get
of how to bound along sheer slopes
& how they know
the pretty red fox    is not
their friend   There are two types
of ibeks   those who thirst for the water
a thousand feet down    & those
already drinking

D.S. Martin is the author of five poetry collections, including Ampersand (2018), Conspiracy of Light: Poems Inspired by the Legacy of C.S. Lewis (2013), and his new book Angelicus (2021)all from Cascade Books. He is Poet-in-Residence at McMaster Divinity College. He is also the Series Editor for the Poiema Poetry Series, where he has edited more than thirty poetry collections and three anthologies. He and his wife live in Brampton, Ontario; they have two adult sons.

This Post Has 8 Comments

  1. Rena ong

    Wonderful imagery by DS.Martin always a pleasure to read his poems that stretch godly imagination and allow deeper thought when reading poetry.

  2. Graham Hillard

    A beautiful poem. The delicate ending is especially fine.

  3. SB Cowger

    Nice work DS Martin. I keep re-reading this to feel the grip of “inventing the same proofless premise…”, where the cowgirls, glaciers, Egyptians, Incas, Inuits, and time itself weave seamlessly into each other. The ending’s filled with life and the great divide–almost like a mirror for me to see myself, which am I…

  4. Laura

    Such an exquisite, vivid poem!

  5. John F. Deane

    A very fine poem here, beautifully constructed and achieved. The subtlety of Biblical reference and its relevance to the subject greatly enhance the success of the piece and the mixture of hard reality and gentle exoticism lift the poem to a high degree of excellence. A real achievement and worthy of acclaim.

  6. Debbie S

    This is so elegant, so tightly packed! Each time I read it, I pick up something else. Thank you, Don

  7. Debbie Sawczak

    This is such an elegant and tight expression of connected ideas. Thank you, Don

  8. Laurie Klein

    There’s a winsome, wide-ranging energy here, gentle and generous. You make it look easy, D.S.

    And that string of small, supple leaps? Wonderfully emblematic of the Ibeks.

    I want to test my footing, bow my head and drink . . .

    Thank you.

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