Simona Carini
Simona Carini was born in Perugia, Italy. She writes poetry and nonfiction and has been published in various venues, in print and online. Her first poetry collection Survival Time was published by Sheila-Na-Gig Editions (2022). She lives in Northern California with her husband, loves to spend time outdoors, and works as an academic researcher. Her website is https://simonacarini.com
On the Redwood Sky Walk
Sequoia Park, Eureka
A hundred feet above the ground, the closest
I’ll ever climb towards the canopy,
my gaze was drawn first
to the base of redwoods and Sitka spruce,
clusters of sword ferns, green fireworks
lighting up the coffee-colored soil.
I inhaled the winter-cold air flavored
by resinous evergreens.
The suspension trail swayed gently,
through the open mesh decking
I saw the forest floor,
the distance from it startled me,
I gripped the handrails then let go,
giving in to floating between trees.
A joyful oh! escaped,
echoed as in a church, birds responded.
The sway less gentle midway,
I imagined becoming airborne, rising
closer to the light above the treetops.
I pressed on and when I gained the platform
my hands reached for the redwood tree,
its soft, fibrous bark, as for a raft.
I wanted this feeling to last, of being
suspended between earth and canopy,
buoyed up, untied, but not unmoored.
A place of ease too, where voices
sound like distant murmurs,
where for a while I drop all gravity.
