Tree of Heaven

From "Decolonizing the Park" - July's Book Giveaway!

Photo by Dennis Huffman

Tree of Heaven
Introduced in 1784

OK
so it grows in Brooklyn
it’s a metaphor
I get it

But it grows everywhere
it won’t stop
and if you try
you just encourage it

Damn near immortal
it spreads
like zombies
in the dark

Or missionaries
whose great ambition
is to convert
the park

— Dennis Huffman

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July’s Book Giveaway

Decolonizing the Park by Dennis Huffman is this month’s Book Giveaway. It is a lovely collection of poems and photographs inspired by Huffman’s work as a volunteer "Weed Warrior" combating invasive plants along Sligo Creek in Maryland.

The poems and the accompanying photographs give a sense of the origin, history, and character of the plants. Raising questions about how they came to be here in this particular park and what it says about us and them. Click here to learn more about the book and author.

How to win a copy of Decolonizing the Park?

As a thank you, each month, we have a drawing for an autographed book by an outstanding author or poet.

Who is eligible for the drawings?

1. Paid Subscribers. This is a reader-supported publication, powered by volunteers. Your support helps to keep us going!

2. Those whose submissions are selected for posting. Building Bridges Word by Word provides a space where we can read each other’s stories, discover what we may have in common, and begin to build bridges across our divides. But we can’t do it without you!
   Recognizing this, all those who have their reflection selected for posting here on Substack and on the Building Bridges Word by Word website are given a byline for their post and are eligible for the Book Giveaways. To learn more about how to submit your reflection, click on the button below.

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