gold mining in 1929, by Stephanie Gemmell

Gold Mining, Cripple Creek, by Ernest Lawson (USA) 1929.

gold mining in 1929
 
broad landscape of frosted purplish mountains
the fresh purity of a clear blue sky
perfectly dotted with feathery clouds
painted as a child might imagine them
summits stretch skyward in vain pursuit
 
houses painted scarlet and sapphire
boldly refuse to blend into the earth
the habitat of fresh aspirations
hopes unrestricted by harrowing truths
peacefully unaware of disaster
 
emerald trees cascade down the mountainside
flecks of disparate colours coalesce
into blended streaks of reality
everything made up of differences
harder to discern the closer you look
 
a portrait of simple intricacies 
like the backdrop of a distant memory
or the vignette of a forgotten life
a daydream drenched in natural brilliance
imagination in technicolour     
 
from nature’s evocative majesty
inspiration suddenly emerges
in reveries fueled by desperation
like a history of untold stories
unrelenting once they are truly free
 
searching for magic glistening metal
rumored to solve the problems life presents
in a frantic effort to steal from the earth
they never truly stop to wonder
what if we’re looking for something else?

Stephanie Gemmell

Stephanie Gemmell is an undergraduate at George Washington University studying Religion, Journalism, and Creative Writing. Her poetry has appeared in Wooden Teeth, and she has been a correspondent and editor for The Rival GW. She currently leads a campus service organization and serves as chaplain for a gender-inclusive fraternity. She is also a flutist and composer, and her work is motivated by the unique power of art to ask questions and inspire unity.