"The River"

1 I sit on the bank in my special place,
2 Feel the breeze that lifts my hair,
3 And watch the ripples run across the river.
4 It is so peaceful here.
5 Deep enough to justify a fishing pole,
6 Quiet enough for my every thought,
7 The perfect place to contemplate
8 The world and my place in it.

9 Downstream, though, the river changes
10 From the one I know.
11 Its calm flow reaches rocky shallows
12 And starts to caper like a kitten,
13 Darting and chasing shadows among the stones.

14 The river leaves the shallows at a run,
15 Rushing faster and faster –
16 A wildcat roaring past steep banks
17 And wild, wet rocks.
18 It claws and crashes in a furious flood,
19 Foaming and spitting as its fury is subdued
20 In the soothing depths of dark, still pools.

21 Tired and tamed by the journey,
22 The river transforms itself again.
23 Its power abates and it seems to move
24 With deliberation, slower and wiser,
25 Past towns that mark its passing and then
26 Go about their business.

27 One by one the towns pass by,
28 And the banks give way
29 To borders of salt-smelling mud marsh.
30 Without need for senseless shows of strength,
31 The river relaxes like an aging lion,
32 Done with the hunt and ready for rest.

33 The water slows until it reaches its destiny,
34 A place not too different from mine,
35 Where the water stretches to meet the sky –
36 Where others just like me use the mirrored stream
37 To fish and contemplate
38 The world and their place in it.

Use the poem to answer the questions.
9. Which line in the poem contains a simile? (1 point)
line 9
line 16***
line 24
line 31