Sarah's Bench Poem by Matthew Leggett

Sitting alone on Sarah’s bench –
For everyone who loves the countryside –
I imagine her next to me. When
She sat where I sit now, beside

The river threading ribbon-like
Through open fields and grassland,
It was the same. Delicate butterflies
Floated through wildflowers and

Trout rose in the riffles to suck at flies.
Sarah and I are different, though,
She sat here for the countryside,
It comforts me just to go

Somewhere not invaded by cement,
Free from the car, the train, the bus.
I love nature not for clichéd sentiment,
I love it for its lack of us.