I am sending you a poem that I composed a few years ago along with 30 other poems. I would be very pleased if you would publish it in “The Downhome Publication.”

The Soul of Newfoundland

Oh! Newfoundland why are thou so far out in the sea?
And why am I, thus, so bereft of thee?
As I look through the window of the ship,
I wonder what has caused such a great slip?

The violent birth of land forms millions of years ago
Did not, I think, shape your soul,
And thus you stood, where you did stand,
A brave, a strong, and solid land.

The great Ice Cap that later covered thee
And all of the land south to the Missouri
Did carve and shape thy periphery,
But left thee alone so strong and free,
And now I know what sustaineth thee.

It’s the majesty of your mountains, your forest, lakes, and streams,
The wonder of your fjords and their deep inland gleams
Or the beauty of the sunrise in the misty morning breeze
As I sit on a grassy hilltop
And listen to your sighing, heaving seas.

It’s the splendour of your mountains
When I stand on one so high
That in my gaze from all around
I can only see the sky,
And other hilltops far and wide
As if my vision to defy.

What a panoramic view this is.
And so far removed from the sea
That the insular connotation
Is lost in obscurity.

It’s the deep voice of your forest
As I walk to my fishing spot,
Or the urgent voice of the babbling brook
Where I like to fish a lot,
And the lily pad on the clear blue pond
Where many a trout I’ve caught.

It’s the brilliant sunset, out the bay,
And over the headland scene,
That is so bright, it defies my sight,
As I stand on the golf course green
And marvel at God’s handiwork
In the Bay of Islands' sheen

So it’s the beauty of your features
And the quietness of your soul
That have created a people strong and proud
Wherever they may go
  Submitted By: NULL