Flood Stage
Richard Luftig   


Three straight weeks of rain
and the fields are failing

in their resolve to hold firm.
Weeds overrun the shoulders

of county roads and under
snowpack drainage ditches

don’t. Outside the barn, chickens
seek out a new pecking order

and a rooster is searching for a drier perch.
The river is up a foot since last night

and its banks are depositing
whatever soil it has left with little apparent

interest while logs rush downstream struggling
to maintain their heads above fast water.

The generator in the garage is primed and ready to go
while I sit here wondering if I should do the same.