Unpolluted Creek


All day,
Iron flecks
Sprinkle from the shell
Of a galvanized bucket,
Its bottom gone,
The clean sides being slowly punctured.

If anything happens here
In the changing sun
Among weeds and stripped metals,
It is only water
Picking through junk, gradually
Enlarging flaws.

Also, among disconnected hoses
In the speckled back
Of a gutted dishwasher,
The smooth paint
Being furred with white mold;
There is no hurry.

What is not important here
Is not important.