Two Kinds

The fox knows many things,
but the hedgehog knows one big thing.
                    —ARCHILOCHUS, Fragments

And yes, I suppose I thought myself the fox
who knew so many small things of its world;
that there's more than one way to cross a field,
more than one break in the fence.

So imagine my surprise to unkindly discover
the scale of the feeling we leave behind;
the hedgehog, in fact, who has just uncovered
that 'one big thing' between lovers and us.

Copyright © 2004 Matthew Hollis All rights reserved
from Ground Water
Bloodaxe Books Ltd. / Dufour Editions
Reprinted by Verse Daily® with permission