Glacial Shapes

The giants

Everest,

Half Dome,

Dents du Midi,

speak in booming voices,

chests protruding,

to announce their immensity

as distant visitors gape

then huddle so cameras can snap

before greater wonders

overtake their splendor.

Yet nestled among these looming titans

are smaller shapes

too numerous to name,

a rocky serpent rising from a sea of shale

or a galloping horsemen anchored in place;

anonymous glacially sculpted creations

never darkened by footprints

who speak through softer edges

and quieter voices

to reflective observers

no cameras in hand.

First published by Willows Wept June 2020