Thursday, March 13, 2025

Poetry Friday: "An Interruption" by Robert S. Foote



Continuing last week's theme of empathy and kindness: 


An Interruption
by Robert S. Foote


A boy had stopped his car
To save a turtle in the road;
I was not far
Behind, and slowed,
And stopped to watch as he began
To shoo it off into the undergrowth—

This wild reminder of an ancient past,
Lumbering to some Late Triassic bog,
Till it was just a rustle in the grass,
....
(Read the rest here.) 

~~~~~~~~~~


Photo thanks to giorgos250 at Pixabay

9 comments:

Janice.scully@.gmail.com said...

I love the ending of this gentle poem. Thank you for sharing Foote’s work!

Karen Edmisten said...

It's lovely, isn't it, Janice? I loved the ending too. :)

laurasalas said...

What a wonderful moment and poem. The voice reminded me of Frost. Thank you, Karen--I didn't know this poem!

Karen Edmisten said...

I didn't know this one either, Laura. I was scrolling through The Writer's Almanac looking for inspiration and found it. It's hard to find much about the poet online, though I did see that he's from Vermont. :)

jama said...

Great poem, Karen!!! Such a lovely moment captured there. Len often stops for turtles too. :)

Karen Edmisten said...

Why am I not surprised that Len stops for turtles too? :) I love that, Jama! :)

Carol Varsalona said...

The poem you shared is touching and the ending should be read by many. It is unfortunate that empathy and kindness are not practiced by all.

Linda Kulp Trout said...

Such a touching poem! My husband stops for turtles, squirrels, and any other critter that happens to cross in front of us. I wish everybody did that, but sadly, I've seen people who don't. Thank you for sharing this poem.

Rose Cappelli said...

What a tender poem, Karen. Last week I was stopped in a line of cars as people tried to rustle two dogs off the road. Escapees, I suspect, relying on the kindness of others.