Exodus

Rank fennel and broom
Grown wanly beside
The cottage and room
We once occupied,
But sold for the snows!

The dahoon berry weeps in blood,
I know,
Watched by the crow—
I’ve seen both grow
In those weird wastes of Dixie!

Credit

This poem is in the public domain. Published in Poem-a-Day on February 27, 2022, by the Academy of American Poets.

About this Poem

“Exodus” appeared in the Crisis XXIX, no. 3 (January, 1925).

Author

Effie Lee Newsome

Effie Lee Newsome was born in 1885 in Philadelphia. One of the first African American poets who primarily published poems for children, she was the author of one volume of poetry, Gladiola Garden (The Associated Publishers, 1940).

Date Published

01/01/1925