El Junque
Small island we called home
Puerto Rico, me encanta
Friends apologized for
the recent visit of Hugo
“El barstardo” tore down buildings,
but the saddest casualty was nature
El Junque, the rainforest
hidden inland, had paid dearly
Now there was but a bit of heaven:
Lush ferns, lantana underfoot
Palms, missing top feathers
but swayin what Mama Earth gave ’em
“Lo siento, Amelita,” said Fran
(I’m so sorry, Amy)
“El Junque is but a, how do you say,
una sombra de los dias pasados”
(A shadow of days gone by)
Yet, as I watched a paradise-painted parrot
linger on bird of paradise, gilding the lily,
I witnessed nature’s sense of humor
And as the juice of a fresh-picked mango
rolled down my chin, all I thought was,
¡Puerto Rico, mi alma! My soul!
© 2013 Amy Barlow Liberatore/Sharp Little Pencil
(Amy de Barlow y Laughlin, la lápiz pequeño y perspicaz)
Hannah at Imaginary Garden With Real Toads wanted poems about the rain forest. How about having one in your back yard… or at least a few miles down the road from you house? That was the luckiest part of living in Puerto Rico – apart from friends I made and abuelitas (grandmothers) who cooed over pictures of mi nena (my little girl), Riley. Gorgeous island, beautiful people. Peace, Amy
Sharp Little Pencil 
Grace
Those storms and typhoons can be devastating but living near the rain forest is a blessing ~ I would love to see mother’s nature close, including her sense of humor, while eating that fresh ripe and sweet mango (I miss this fruit) ~
vandana sharma
SO SAD THAT THAT JUNGLES ARE SHRINKING AND HUMANS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR IT. THESE JUNGLES GIVE US SO MUCH AND WE NOTHING.
vivinfrance
Perhaps with climate change, rain forests will pop up in new locations. I loved your jaunt to Puerto Rico, and specially liked the mango juice running down your chin!
Kerry O'Connor
Wonderful to read this from the point of view of someone who has lived in the rain forest region. It sounds beautiful, wild and certainly a place never to be forgotten.
Roger Green
I think I told you my sister lived in PR for 6 years and never had a chance to visit. Still, I did worry about the hurricane season.
margaretbednar
We have a friend in Costa Rico and the photos I see … well, it is hard for me to believe such a place exists. And to think Madagascar is predicted to last only another 50 years… !!
Grandmother (Mary)
Glad I stopped by to read another account of the rainforest firsthand. Delightful.
Kay, Alberta, Canada
I loved this bilingual jungle visit, Amelita. So sad about the hurricanes, but we know the jungle’s real enemy is mankind and what we call progress.
K
Maggie Grace
I hear hope in your last line? Maybe the next generation can help turn around the impact of the previous generations. I didn’t think of natural disasters but focused on the manmade destruction. Just as sad when nature destroys its own 😦
Hannah Gosselin
Ooo!!! I want to visit there now…and I really would like to have some mango now!!
This gave me a chill, “A shadow of days gone by.”
And I like your hopeful ending, Amy!!
Thank you for writing about the jungle! ♥
georgefloreswrite
The forest will bounce back, Amy. Whenever we have a hurricane, things come back even more hearty and green. Our avocado tree doubled in size after the last one and gave us too much fruit a few years later.
Susie Clevenger (@wingsobutterfly)
I have been through hurricanes myself and have seen the devastation they brought only to see nature come back with such beauty. I look forward to my visit there. We leave on our trip May 11th.
Mary
Amy, it was so good to read your poem from personal experience. I do think I would LOVE visiting Puerto Rico.
Sherry Blue Sky
Oh Amy, you lived in paradise for a time, like I did…..how lovely. I love the Puerto Rican language throughout your poem.
Sara v
Visited El Junque several years ago. Was packed with people, a conga line up the mountain. But at the top que preciosa! Vista of miles of rainforest and mist 🙂
Sharp Little Pencil
THANKS TO ALL! I admire the sense of hopefulness, that the rainforest can indeed “outrun” the killing machines. Here’s praying it’s true. And Sara, I hope you joined the conga line!! Peace, Amy