You walk away for just a day and find your home is gone.
Alligators from the mangrove swamp now lost in flooded halls,
warblers winging toward the hemlock meet, instead, a glassy death,
coyotes lost in city streets, cougars searching for the door.
Spring draws thrushes north to breed, they find unyielding towers instead,
unwelcome mats greet salmon at the doorways of their gravel beds
warming water waving them away.
We too are losing shelter to cement and shopping mall,
incessant noise and frantic zeal are banging on the door.
Don’t give this home invasion entry to your habitat.
Guard it with fierce watchdogs, the cabin in your heart.
—
Bonnie Demerjian writes from Southeast Alaska’s Tongass National Forest where she migrated to teach a year or two. Before she knew it, she had become a forever Alaskan. Her poems have been published in print and online publications including Alaska Women Speak, Tidal Echoes, Blue Heron Review, Pure Slush and the Unmooring. She has also written four non-fiction books on Southeast Alaska’s history and nature.
