Ophelia by Barbara Leonhard
Ophelia
There is a willow that grows aslant a brook…
-Shakespeare, Hamlet
When the old willow weeps,
her shoulders bend to the sun,
her ancient songs resound
in tune with us
Her light binds us to her limbs
Her learning and duty, her strength
to stand firm as we battle
Her skirt, a shelter to our fallen
In her tears, no regrets
Our grief and despair seek solace
in this humble Sallow
We bow to her
in gratitude.
© Barbara Leonhard
This poem appeared in Rough-Cut Elegies. It received a 2025 Pushcart Nomination by the editors.
Barbara Leonhard is the author of Three-Penny Memories: A Poetic Memoir and co-author of Too Much Fun to Be Legal. Her poetry has received awards and honors from Well-Versed 2021 and Spillwords Press. She’s a nominee for the Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net. Trending Poets named her Poet of the Year 2023. Some of her poems have been translated into Italian, Albanian, and Chinese. Barbara is the Editor for MasticadoresUSA, the Co-Poetry Editor for LatinosUSA-English Edition, and the Editor for her literary journal, FEED THE HOLY. Her blog: Extraordinary Sunshine Weaver.
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