“Where I Come From” is a Darling series that pays homage to the cities, towns and countries that we call home. Although we are not defined by where we come from, these places are a defining part of our stories.
I come from red cinder roads and Ponderosa Pine trees,
The Metolius River, shades of azure and azul.
I come from sunsets that scribble the sky,
From lightning that singes the forest,
snow that turns the land quiet and still.
I am from backpacks and four-wheel drive,
From paddleboards and brook trout,
From mule deer and bobcats,
From trail runs out my backdoor.
I come from hearty people,
Who use snow blowers and skid-train,
From yak-trax and trekking poles.
I come from folk music festivals,
physicians who share cell numbers,
And from memorials held in a pasture.
I come from weddings in hay barns,
Dances on pine floors,
From a timber-cross my husband built.
I come from Black Lives Matter,
fist in the air
On the corner of Main Street.
From Halloween parades,
Then Christmas, then rodeo.
I come from the day after summer day at
The Village Green park with toddlers
Then elementary schoolers then
Driving by memories,
the scent of sage and sweet.
Image via Katie Thurmes of Artifact Uprising, Darling Issue No. 10
