dVerse Poets – Prosery – Jim Harrison
Linda at dVerse has invited us to take a line from the work of Jim Harrison – “A cow is screaming across the arroyo.” taken from his poem ‘Cow.’
Photo: Pixabay.com
“Moo may represent and idea, but only the cow knows.” Mason Cooley
Advent Herald
A cow is screaming across the arroyo as the weaners are drawn aside. The cattle-hands working the herd, the weaners easily pushed across the arroyo to the feeders like children to a lolly counter. I listened to her screaming, a gut-grief heartfelt, and though I cannot speak it, a warning was implied. Burgers or breeders, the children are consumed. And as I walked reflecting, I wondered about all the herding of life, this arroyo is not the Rubicon, but a die was no less cast.
I came to the creek-line with an angel or devil, I’m not sure, but I left the gate open and the screaming cow dove through. She spoke so clearly as we passed, “Those who lie or sup from the manger will be crucified one day.” Startled, I ran through, I’ve been wandering un-herded ever since, across that arroyo.
©Paul Vincent Cannon
Paul, pvcann.com
parallax 
Interesting!
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🙂
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A very nice take on the prompt! Love how you wove advent into your story! Well done.
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I was writing away and it just slid in – just seemed to fit, couldn’t help myself after that. Thank you Dwight.
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I understand completely! A touch of inspiration!
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sadly all cattle will be consumed, you took me there 🙂
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Sorry, yet not sorry, but also we and all species are being consumed, the tragedy of our inability.
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our inability to live in harmony and keep the balance …
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Yes, rights over responsibilities.
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Intriguing. Worth another read!!!
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Many thanks for that Judy.
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A very unsettling response to the prompt. (What an evocative line from the Harrison poem.)
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Yes, he’s new to me, so was glad to be made aware of him, thank you Liz, yes, a philosophical poem really.
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Wow very deep
>
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Many thanks Lyn 🙂
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Most cows scream for their babies nowadays because we take them away as soon as they’re born. That milk is for us. That baby is for filets of veal.
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Yes, I ran Hereford cattle for some years, but I had a Jersey milking cow, when I took the calf out that was the case, lot of bellowing.
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It’s good to know there are still places where cows keep their calves and they’re not all taken away immediately and crated for fattening. Barbaric.
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Yes, I’ve had to reevaluate my consumption based on that fact. I’m neither vegetarian or vegan, though I could easily be either. But I have reduced my consumption of meat. I think where I am we tend to over eat anyway.
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Three of our children are vegan so we’re going that way. Cutting out meat has been painless, but it’s hard not to use cheese in cooking, I find. If everybody just cut down to what the doctors say is a sensible level we might turn things around. I’m still hearing people saying they’ve cut down their meat consumption…to once a day!!!!!
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Yes, it’s a growing thing, two of ours are vegan. Yes, I agree Jane, if we all cut back it would change a lot.
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I’d be in favour of legislation on environmental issues, call me Stalin if you like, but give people a choice and they’ll take the path of least resistance.
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Yes, people are so weak on this issue, I’d be like that too, well, come the revolution … but it will need legislation to make change happen fast enough, but the first hurdle being the gravy train riders who are in the way.
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Yes. We’re in the grip of endless strikes in France, one thing after an other or all at once, depending on the day of the week. It started off with raising the tax on diesel because it’s filthy. All these measures are necessary, but nobody wants to pay more for anything. As long as the great mass of people have difficulty even paying for the basics, none of these measures will be accepted. Yet there is absolutely nothing being done to make the extremely rich even pay their taxes, never mind curbing the amount they’re allowed to cream off the system. Come the revolution. Might not be as far off as we think. They’re singing the Marseillaise in the streets here and you know where that leads…
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Same here – the top 10% are living beyond the dreams of small nations, criminal in my eyes.
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The gulf in remuneration it so huge. It seems that the less you work in the easiest conditions, the more you earn. Stick your money in a dodgy arms contract and you don’t have to work at all.
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Yes, and a smug arrogance comes with it. I’ve noticed a deterioration in compassion and they presume to dictate. The apparatchiks rise from amongst and crush the life out of us.
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I’ve stopped believing in the inherent ‘goodness’ of people. I think there’s more like an inherent ‘egoism’ and an ability to judge what is reasonable. If people won’t accept that they don’t need a private island, four homes, six cars a plane and a couple of yachts, then there’s no point expecting that they’ll give them up willingly.
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I so agree Jane, there is an inherent egoism, which after Freud and Jung and Klein informs us of a primitive mind, yes, the greed makes me vomit.
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I don’t think they understood much about how ‘prlmitive’ minds work. Seems to me that more ‘sophisticated’ we get the less time we have for anything but our selves. Our local supermarket brochures came in the post this morning. One of them is aimed at women. It’s called ‘Me First’. I ask you.
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That campaign has picked it well, that’s where the culture is. A coffee shop owner recently copped a blast because she had the audacity to ask a customer to remove his bare feet from a a cushion – entitled, privileged, selfish, self-focussed! Gasp! i agree, the primitive brain still rules much of corporate living.
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Did you ever see that video of a kid on either a subway or the London underground, lying down on the seats, headphones on? A guy asks him to move his legs so he can sit down. The kid ignores him. The guy sits on him. The kid blows a gasket as if he’s been assaulted! Priceless.
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No, that would be worth a viewing, sad though.
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Sad that nobody ever sat on him at home.
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Yes, I would have 🙂
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🙂 He’d have had you locked up for child abuse.
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I play with the idea I’d take my chances 🙂
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🙂
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I believe in a level of shaming for positive good. I’d have his picture on every form of public transport with the words, please sit on this guy.
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Some people have a fund of knowledge of their rights and are completely ignorant of their responsibilities. We lived next door to a hostel for young homeless people. There was a hard core of ‘inmates’ who made utter nuisances of themselves, drinking and fighting outside, kicking doors and playing football against the neighbours’ windows. We had to have our door fixed when one of them got upset about his social security cheque arriving late and went on the rampage up the street. We complained (obviously) and one of the minders brought him round to apologise. Instead of an apology he gave us a sort of sermon about his broken childhood and how his behaviour wasn’t his fault, it was his parents’ and society’s and if the social security had not paid his cheque two days late he wouldn’t have done it.
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Makes a mockery of those who struggle as street people trying to find meaning and dignity.
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It does. This lot were just bone idle. The cook left because she refused to prepare food for kids who wouldn’t get up in time to eat it, or complained about what they were served and went out for a burger instead. They didn’t even clean their own rooms…
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Horrible lot!
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Sad. As you say, the real hopeless cases who really need help are lying under the bridges while these tossers complain about being woken up by the noise of the vacuum cleaner.
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Poor, precious little darlings, sickening.
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Tragic.
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Yes, no other words for it really.
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🙂
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There is a deep spiritual quality to your story Paul; much like an awakening. Excellent!
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Thank yo so much for your encouraging words Linda.
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Very self-aware. You’ve conveyed a lot here. I wish more were as aware.
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I live in hope, there are more than we realise, just not around us or at least, obvious enough. Thank you so much for sharing that.
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Nice description: “Burgers or breeders, the children are consumed.” I like the rushing out to be un-herded and the scream as a warning.
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A very unique poem, with Advent included. Love it! Michael
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Thank you Michael.
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:-))
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Loved your piece. I meant to take part for this prompt but didn’t due to various constraints – problematic internet connection being one of them. Very unusual for me, I attended a carol singing event in my local [small (minded)] town. Words to one of the songs, of the baby in Mary’s lap had my thoughts jump to the screaming cow, heralding Jesus’ eventual crucifixion. And here it is.
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Wow, how the connections happen! I’m sorry you were prevented from participating. I can’t get over your experience and my words, thank you so much for sharing that.
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Smiles …
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