I Miss the Mountains

I miss the mountains whence I came
The Blue Ridge of Southwest Virginia
The Parkway ribbons along their top
From Afton to Fancy Gap non-stop

In April they turn from brown to green
Redbuds and dogwoods declare spring
In October they blaze yellow, orange, red,
Under myriad sunsets, moons full and new
Night skies lit by stars or gray with rain

In December cloaked in ice and snow
Roads treacherous with frozen slush
Then thawed to run off down steep roadside drains
Into creeks rushing east to the James or North to the New

My childhood home rests on a high ridge
At Riner in Montgomery County
Looks south to Floyd and North to Giles
East to Roanoke and West to Pulaski
Mountaintops of five counties all in view

Blessed with bluegrass and clover pastures
Oaks white red and chestnut on slopes above
Hickories maples poplars white pines
Pawpaws cedars hemlocks all mine

Not mine to own but mine to view
Feel inside me eternally
If you’re raised in the Blue Ridge you will always be
A mountain person in your soul