by Patricia Fargnoli

by Patricia Fargnoli
     When I heard the bombing
     had begun I drove down
     to Keene and bought
     a 3x magnifying glass，
     a sketch book
     and drawing pencils. Then，
     I went out behind the apartments
     to snap off seed pods， weeds
     I could not name
     and a couple of brittle leaves.
     I saved the afternoon
     by studying edges
     of petals， seeds，
     the marvelous veins
     and sketching them.
     On the page， I wrote：
     unknown weeds 10/7/01， found
     in the patch between Applewood
     and the Historical Museum；
     on the day we began bombing.
     Then I made a pot of soup
     out of black-eyed peas
     and a ham bone
     I'd frozen from Easter.
     I threw in onions， garlic，
     parsley， cumin，
     a couple of tomatoes——
     whatever made sense.
     Enough for an army.