Briana Peterson

Century Plant

Man is eclipsed by the immensity of nature;
Dwarfed by the flora which reaches ever upwards
To embrace the warm radiance of the Sun.

As the Century Plant unfurls itself
In a Fibonaccian array,
Stretching through the years to an incredible height;

A boy grows into a man,
Experiences and memories coalesce and crystalize,
A consciousness grows into dizzying complexity.

Decades accumulate in many ways
Our eyes cannot always see.
Man does not wear his century
With the boldness of the Agave.

After the Edson Smith Photo Collection Century Plant

Briana Peterson graduated from UCSB with a BA in Religious Studies as well as Cultural Anthropology.  She then moved to Java to study Karawitan, a traditional Javanese orchestra, at ISI Yogyakarta.  She currently is a graduate student at SJSU, pursuing a master’s degree in Library and Information Science.  She has a great love of learning and a passion for the arts, and enjoys exploring new places and people in culturally conscious ways. Also by this poet: “Carpinteria Grapevine