A desperate knock upon the door
Surprised the raven guard.
The fear it told, it's sulfur stench,
Burned bright out in the yard.
The moon was dark, the stars were bright,
The woods a silent hall.
The couple, warm beside the hearth,
Rose quick to heed the call.
They found a man in panic's grip,
"Come quick, there's blood, she'll die!"
They drew a calmness from the earth
And stilled his painful cry.
They knew this man, his wife with child,
They knew her time drew near.
With herbs and swaddles in their pack,
They sped to salve his fear.
They both were wise in Gaia's ways,
Their pharmacy her field.
Well taught in herbs and roots to dry,
To make most illness yield.
They found the lass there laboring,
But not much in distress.
Their first, the young da, full of fear,
Did little to impress.
Of husbandry of sheep and kine,
He knew, for 'twas his life,
A knowledge that gave him no peace,
But fear for babe and wife.
The old man said, "Restock the wood,
Put water on to boil."
Was busy work to block his mind
And loosen fear's tight coil.
The couple had, long years ago,
Worked out what each should do.
Her's to coach and catch and cut,
And his to steep the brew.
His wife and hedge-witch mother taught
Him how to search and take,
To know which plants to pick and dry,
What medicines they'd make.
This made him wise in different ways,
From men for miles around.
He did not scruple at the chance
To baffle and astound.
His intuition aided him
With when and how to speak,
Then seeds of sage advice would bloom
When help from him they'd seek.
He knew the simple minds of those
With whom he lived and worked,
But never talked he down to them,
And labor never shirked.
His good wife aided natures push
And helped a healthy birth.
He calmed the father of the child
And proved a different worth.
They were honored members of
A close community,
Valued for her wisdom's sake,
And his sagacity.
Richard Higley © May 24 2016
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The Wandering Bard
Poetrythe difference between tales of war and the reality of same
