search articles:     from the issue of April 12, 2007         American Life in Poetry  BY TED KOOSER, U.S. POET LAUREATE, 2004-2006 By describing the relocation of the moles which ravaged her yard, Washington poet Judith Kitchen presents an experience that resonates beyond the simple details, and suggests that children can learn important lessons through observation of the natural world. Catching the Moles First we tamp down the ridges that criss-cross the yard then wait for the ground to move again. I hold the shoe box, you, the trowel. When I give you the signal you dig in behind and flip forward. Out he pops into daylight, blind velvet. We nudge him into the box, carry him down the hill. Four times we've done it. The children worry. Have we let them all go at the very same spot? Will they find each other? We can't be sure ourselves, only just beginning to learn the fragile rules of uprooting. Poem copyright (c) 1986 by Judith Kitchen, whose most recent book is the novel, "The House on Eccles Road," Graywolf Press, 2004. Reprinted from "Perennials," Anhinga Press, 1986, with permission of the author. This weekly column is supported by the UNL Department of English, The Poetry Foundation and The Library of Congress. This column does not accept unsolicited poetry. GO TO: ISSUE OF APRIL 12 ARTS HEADLINES FOR APRIL 12 Film festival to explore race, identity, revolution American Life in Poetry Chamber Orchestra presents April 13 jazz performance MFA THESIS Plains Song writers offer April 18 reading Scarlet and Cream show is April 15 Updated 'Aida' to play Lied, April 20-21 732778S36971X