Cottonmouth Country

Cottonmouth Country
by Louise Gluck
Fish bones walked the waves off Hatteras.
And there were other signs
That Death wooed us, by water, wooed us
By land: among the pines
An uncurled cottonmouth that rolled on moss
Reared in the polluted air.
Birth, not death, is the hard loss.
I know. I also left a skin there.

Louise Gluck was born in New York City in 1943 and grew up on Long Island.
I think in the second to last line when she says, "Birth, not death, is the hard loss," Gluck is referring to the fact that life is a lot harder to live than it is to die. And saying "I know. I also left a skin there," is just referring to her own life that she has lived. I also like the way she says, "Fish bones walked the waves of Hatteras." The image of fish bones walking really catches the audience and creates a vivid image for readers to hold on to.