A man with his face half-soaked
with shade from a straw sombrero
balances his wheelbarrow as he bolts
down the heightened aisles of earth,
lifting a load full to the brim
with plátanos tree cuttings.
Now pauses, picks one & places it
into a cradle of soil, tucking it in
& kissing it like it was his own son,
while beads of sweat dive
off the curl in his mustache,
falling & fertilizing the fruit of his labors.
Eric Obscherning is a senior studying biology, creative writing, and global health. Currently, his life is comprised of writing two theses. (Never do this.) He’s passionate about (and critical of) global development, having been a part of some successful, mostly unsuccessful projects to this end in Uganda and the Dominican Republic.