Featured "Learning to See" poet
M.J. Motl
Praise the Pine Cone
Praise the pine cone
fruit of the mighty conifer.
Male and female,
pollen and seed producers,
woody and scaly.
Praise the pine cone
pop, sputter and crackle
in cook-out fires.
They cover the ground
all year round.
Glue them, paint them,
decorate them, find
the longest, smoothest, curviest.
Praise the pine cone.
They are free.
If they counted for a penny
brown and round, beggars would be rich.
Praise the pine cone
and its tree,
it grows and gives
insects homes,
birds nests,
children fun.
Praise the pine cone.
