Emily Strauss
The Raven Coast
too steep for grazing cows, the dry cliffs rise
whitely in the sun, yet crumble in winter
storms throw down piles of broken rocks
no roads lead to the edge, coyotes tiptoe
on the flat bluffs— here the ravens rule
over the broken surf, roosting on bare
nooks, swirling in the onshore winds,
following animal trails, waiting, watching—
there is a long road only they know
dirt tracks with bits of fur or feathers
from a dark history of encircled black
gatherings that denote survival,
lonely against the sea.
Bio
Emily Strauss has an M.A. in English, but is self-taught in poetry. Over 170 of her poems appear in dozens of online venues and in anthologies. The natural world is generally her framework; she often focuses on the tension between nature and humanity, using concrete images to illuminate the loss of meaning between them. She is a semi-retired teacher living in California.