The fire came from the national forest, the firemen
pumping water from my brother’s pool later
said it jumped over his house and the street
roaring down the backside of the homes
opposite. The deer, fleeing this fire-
storm had only to run down the
street to save herself. Unable
to read a map she stayed in
front of the fire, pinning
herself in a steel fence
where the flames
cooked her.
This was no natural
disaster as nature didn’t
kill her. Men did, men who
started the fire and built the fence.
– previously published in About Place Journal, Vol. V issue 1 (May 2018).
Poem by Roger Camp.
Roger Camp lives in Seal Beach, CA where he muses on his orchids, walks the pier, and spends afternoons with his pal, Harry, over drinks at Nick’s on 2nd. When he’s not at home, he’s traveling in the Old World. His work has appeared in Gulf Stream, Pank, Southern Poetry Review and Nimrod.