Stop4

And God Said to Greenville

After Ashley M. Jones

by Renee Kalagayan

I formed you out of every good thing—
from the red dust of the ground
and the dust of peaches,
the sour heft of buttermilk biscuits.
I breathed into your nostrils
the pollen of azaleas and dogwoods,
the heat of a thousand suns.
On your forehead I smeared
the sweat of a tall glass
of sweet iced tea with a wink
of lemon lingering on ice.
Greenville, I split your lush middle
with a river and its flowers.
I bow you in half with a bridge
suspended between Carolina clay
and heaven. I pour blessings over
your shoulders, orange boulders,
and your ever-greening grass.
I give you egrets on the banks
and hawks in the hills. I give you
textile mills and blue ridges,
humidity’s kisses over and over,
love and vibrant hope in the chorus
of the cardinal and the wren,
glory hallelujah, amen.

Thank you for being part of our Artisphere preview! This digital stop is a sneak peek—the physical trail markers and full interactive experience will be installed in June. Stay tuned! 

Born and reared in Greenville, Renee Kalagayan is an Asian-American writer and editor whose work is featured or forthcoming in Euphemism, Relief, About Place, SoFloPoJo, Carolina Muse, and other journals. She is also an MFA candidate at Converse University in Spartanburg, and the assistant poetry editor of South 85 Journal.

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