Poetry Friday: THE DEMON SNAG

This poem by Eva Dehart, the hero of my middle grade novel, EVA OF THE SKY, was inspired by a snag in the canyon behind my father-in-law's orchard in the Methow Valley. This is an extremely zoomed in photo of the snag, which is high on a hill above the canyon.


THE DEMON SNAG

Halfway up the canyon,
the blackened snag on the hill
looms like a demon,
conjuring and cackling
evil dreams of the wild--
cougar teeth and bear claws and being eaten alive--
until fear cripples my heart.

I sharpen Dad's ax--
but a demon felled would be a demon still.
I call for a wizard,
but they are too busy fighting dragons.

If I were Joan of Arc,
I could defeat the Demon Snag myself
with a shining sword.
But I am only Eva of the Farm,
armed with a shining imagination
that makes me run home fast.

--Eva of the Farm
(This poem can be found on page 20 of the novel)