Parting Ways by Martha Christina

My grandfather planted
and harvested according
to what he learned from
his father, then in turn tried
to teach my father the same.

My father believed
his father could tell him
nothing he needed to know.

And so, they parted ways,

an old-fashioned saying,
full of wisdom, and loss.



Martha Christina has published two collections: Staying Found (Fleur-de-lis Press) and Against Detachment (Pecan Grove Press). Her work appears in earlier issues of Red Eft Review, and recently in Star 82 Review, Crab Orchard Review, and Tiny Seed Journal’s Pollinator Project. Born and raised in Indiana, she now lives in Bristol, Rhode Island.