My Totem
At the top of my totem
Would be a “God’s” head
Of sorts
A round ball
Like a blue marble
The earth my origin
The top of my totem
Would float in a starry sky
Then would come the
Porpoise that played in the bay
Morning to night
Followed by the soft pawed cat
My familiar
Constant companion
His wise eyes
An applied stone
Of the clearest blue
And a knowing smile
Forrest animals would follow
The deer, elk and the moose
Then the smaller animals
And many, many insects
All kinds, sizes and colors
Head to toe, my totem
August 18, 2018
I do not know what was carved on my Grand Father’s chest? But I will look deep and see if I can divine my totem. This is what I know about my Great Grand Father, who came to this country from Ireland, in 1858. Two of the three brothers, settled in Trinity County, in Texas. Where they grew cotton, on a large plantation.
I do not know what religion they followed, but there were only two churches in their county, the Baptist and the Methodist. It was said, he didn’t really like the Methodist, for they were not pious enough, but he could not abide the Baptist…so he supported the Methodist Church.
annellannell 
I LOVE this – the blue marble God’s head, the earth your origin, the playful porpoises and all the other creatures. This is wonderful to read and envision. Your Irish history is like mine. My great grandma came to Canada from County Cork, to escape the potato famine. She lived a hard life, on the land, while her husband laid tracks for the first cross country railway. My grandma told me that as a girl she could see ruts in the ground left by the covered wagons.
Thank you Sherry. Life can be hard, but your Grandmother loved you still. xoxoxo Annell Livingston
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Your totem is surely rich and beautiful; you are a child of the whole Earth, and the starry Universe.
Thank you Rosemary. Annell Livingston
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Love your after commentary! And the image of your totem is breathtaking – I think I’d admire it for hours. Just imagine it carved in wood!
Thank you, Margaret. Annell Livingston
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Now that is a beautiful, original totem, Annell! ”Like a blue marble / The earth my origin’ and a ‘Porpoise that played in the bay’. And, best of all’ ‘the soft pawed cat / My familiar / Constant companion’ – one of mine is sitting on the desk beside me as I type! Like Margaret, I imagine it carved in wood.
Thank you so much Kim, if we can imagine it, is it so? Annell Livingston
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You took a great angle on the prompt, Annell, to take us through the construction of the totem pole.
Thank you Kerry. Annell Livingston
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“His wise eyes
An applied stone
Of the clearest blue”
This paints a beautiful picture. Love this poem, Annell!
Thank you so much purplepeninportland! Annell Livingston
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