The Challenge
this morning
sun plays cold
between arthritic grasses
and my feet
the first time I brought my father to this place
he challenged me
said “if I lived here I would walk
this entire hill”
I who had already walked it sunrise to sunset
with two different dogs
seen red-tail hawks
stretch their wings
from hilltop to mountain
I didn’t tell him
the last time we were here
we walked the first one hundred steps
of his challenge together
~ Bob Stallworthy
Bob Stallworthy has been writing poetry, nonfiction and been active in the writing community in Alberta for 27 years. He has four books of poetry and one non-fiction e-book published. His work has been short-listed for the City of Calgary W.O. Mitchell Book Prize twice and the Stephan G. Stephansson Award for Poetry once.
Both poems first appeared in Things that Matter Now, Frontenac House, 2009.
Bob is currently co-editor of blueskiespoetry.ca and the RE:ACT Calgary Project, as well as an ambassador for the RE:ACT Collective.
To more of Bob’s work, click here
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