The Mourning to Their Joy

Constant twittering fills the air

glorifying this summerlike day of Spring,

a soprano aria floats over the top

twining through the rays of warmth

as a slow, low coo- coo-coo weaves reality

through the counted days of bliss-

the mourning to their joy.

#VerseLove Day 14- Free Writing

So just went with the flow, flow, flow. I was relaxing in my backyard after work listening to the birds chirp away and soaking up some sun. This is a summer-like 80 degree day with pure sunshine. This is extraordinary for April in my part of New York. Then a Mourning Dove started cooing and the line " mourning to their joy" popped into my head. It made me think that even though the weather is joyous right now, it will not be in 2 days- much colder. We will all be mourning the loss of this.

Photo by Marvin Filmaker: https://www.pexels.com/photo/a-close-up-shot-of-a-mourning-dove-15269075/

Nature Wrote It's Own Poem

 

This is a photo poem, just like there can be a photo essay. Leigh Anne Eck, http://adayinthelifeof19b.blogspot.com/, put out her weekly Solace and Connection prompt. This week's nature inspired prompt was to pay attention. It was inspired by this quote- "Poetry is the act of paying attention." by Clint Smith.  So I decided to pay close attention to one specific daffodil plant. With the warm weather and days of pure sunlight, this plant changed incredibly this week. I took a photo each day until full bloom. I wasn't intending to do a photo poem but I believe nature wrote its own poem this week. I was just able to capture it. 

Oh Yes, Mother Nature, I Enjoyed Your Sample Spring!

Gray slab of boulder - - wonderful perch to take in the view.

Cool wind whimpering my clothes -- branches dancing in Spring celebration.

Sunshine warming my back -- surfing across the tops of waves.

A woosh-swoosh- pause water song -- waves meeting the curvy C's of shore.

Multi-colored nature litter -- crushed shells and pebble debris.

Naked, smooth tree branch -- shipwrecked on the beach

Lone seagull rollercoastering -- rising, diving between sea and sky.

Gray, then royal blue, then deep navy --- lake colors from shore to horizon baby blue sky.

Location: Lake Ontario

Date: April 1st

Time: 1:30

Season: Spring

Mother Nature sure played an April Fool's joke in my neck of the woods. We had about 4 hours of loveliness- 70 degrees, sunshine and clear blue sky before the winds of change brought winter back to our door. It was 25 the next day. I made sure to get out and enjoy those hours. These observations were made while sitting on a boulder looking out over Lake Ontario in response to the "Begin Where You Are" prompt from Solace and Connection. 

Psithurism

 

Psithurism

def: the sound of wind in the trees

A secret rustle
gently rolls leaves to and fro
comfort on the breeze

Long exhaled whooshes
sway treetops in unison
gaining momentum

Continuous groans
as branches shake, rattle and roll
change is a coming

Howling, shrieking force
splintering arms from core
will the damage heal

What melody will your symphony compose today?
The musicians are at the mercy of the mercurial mistral.

This poem is for Day 3 of the #VerseLove Poetry Challenge. The prompt today was to choose a word that resonates with you and then create a Haiku Sonnet. This form of poetry has 4 haikus and then 2 lines at the end to make 14 lines like a sonnet. 

Walk Inspired Spring Haikus

 Winter's fierce exhale,

sunshine's warmth and light

Battle of change continues

Patterns of grace

amongst decomposing life

Little lights of hope

Iced hardness melted

Flowing freely once again

Choosing path to take

Surprise! The time's now.

Purple party poppers burst

Spring celebration

Sealed hard and tight

Soaking in life-giving sustenance

Awakening is near

I just finished reading Three Simple Lines: A Writer's Pilgrimage into the Heart and Homeland of Haiku by Natalie Goldberg. Part of my learning was that haiku does not need to be written in the 5-7-5 syllable pattern that I had always learned but it can just be 3 short lines. The tricky part is that these 3 lines need to make the mind leap.

So I had haiku on my mind as I went out for a walk today. It seemed that I was on a Spring scavenger hunt during my walk as many new features of Spring caught my eye. I was inspired to try writing haikus about these lovely nature gifts. I know that I wrote 3 lines for each one- some in the 5-7-5 manner. I don't know how much of a mind leap exists in them but I hope my attention to now comes through.

 

Come Out and Enjoy the Day

"Come out and enjoy the day!"

chirps the chickadee perched on my deck rail,

head turning from side to side trying to hold me in its gaze.

"Come out and enjoy the day!"

beckons the squirrel investigating the snowless deck,

bounding over to my French doors, glancing in to invite me to join him.

"Come out and enjoy the day!"

herald the first yellow blossoms of Spring

pooling in a thatch of gold amongst the brown.

"Come out and enjoy the day!"

call the sunbeams

dancing across the screen of my laptop.

RSVP'ing to the invitations... out the door I go.

This 2nd day of Spring is definitely calling me to go outside and enjoy it. I had no inspiration to write then sitting here looking out the window it came to me. The squirrel, chickadee, flowers and sun know how wonderful this Springy day is and want to share it with this human. I thank them for the reminder to celebrate their gorgeous day. Turning the computer off and out the door I go.

On Sun, You are a Trickster

 

                                                             Sunbeams fill the room                                                             

  Drawing attention outside  

Calling us to play  

Oh sun, you are a trickster

no warmth, winter's living on

All day long I sat in a conference room with no windows. At the end of the school day, I returned to my room. It was filled with sunshine. I happily looked out the window at the blue sky and brightness and felt a desire to be outside. The day had the mirage of Spring about it. I had a bounce in my step walking down the hallway thinking of a walk on a beautiful sunshiny Spring day. As I opened the door, I was blasted with the cold air of winter. There was a definite wind chill in the air. My Springy hopefulness was dashed by the cold slap of winter. Oh sun, you are definitely a trickster and fooled me. I guess I will have to settle for just the joy of your brightness and wait patiently for your warmth to fully arrive.

Poetry form: Tanka ( ancient Japanese form that has 5 lines and 31 syllables. (5 in first line, 7 in second, 5 in third, the 7 in forth and fifth)