A Forest Resting Place (A Poem)

By Joyce Jacobo

[Author’s Note: Robin Hood has lived on in legends and retellings of his stories over the years, but it always surprised me as to how he passed away–and where he now rests forever.]

Have you ever heard . . .

   like an echo along wooden pathways

      of the aged yew tree

          where the final arrow

                 from a fabled archer

                        once quivered?

He has rested beneath a mossy stone covered in crosses

       surrounded by stone walls and fencing

            ever since times now called “of yore”—

                  much like

                          he rested with his merry band

                                 whose members sheltered

                                           deep within

                                                Sherwood Forest

They were rogues

      or so the legends have said

           that stole from the rich and corrupt

                to pass onto the poor and innocent

                              …and battled a wicked Sheriff

                                        …and saved a marriage

                                           …and fed communities

                                                  …and were masters of disguise

Ove time         most of         that merry band

    scattered               to other parts

                     throughout              the world—

                                  except one who

                                       will always remain

                                              near the place he loved best

                                                         like a guardian

                                                                           forever

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