Water moccasin along lower Apalachicola River with tan stain from river mud, by Doug Alderson
By Anonymous
Serpentine dread
In ebb-tide marsh,
Swamp-forest thicket
And the collard patch      Â
Behind the shed,
Stalking
Yet stalked
By the conceit of concrete
Hardening its diminishing realm            Â
Of halcyon paradise:
Emerald frogs, silver fishes
And a spider’s golden thread.
Where spirit voices
Of covert waters and wood
Breathe heated lifeÂ
Of primal need.
       Â
Coil of life,
Coil of death,
Venom to fade day
Into velvet night.
     Â
Yet,
To vilify the viper’s strike
Is to vilify the blackbird’s night-song,
The dragonfly’s jeweled flight
Or the warmth of summer soil,
Each a harmonious note
In the Godly hymn of life.
Click here for more information about the water moccasin and how to distinguish it from other water snakes.