Sunday, May 13, 2018

Poem: Still Life in Spring (Audio)

Reader's Choice Poem of 2018: Best Imagery

It’s officially spring!

At least it is where I live. Actually, we had a pretty early spring, a brief snow that killed most of the crocus, then sunny day after sunny day. It’s unusual for this time of year. Usually, we get more rain, but I’m enjoying the sunshine! (I kinda miss the rain. Then I don’t have to water my outdoor plants.)

Until we get our next rainfall, I’ll take whatever kind of weather we’ve got! (Unless it's tornadoes/droughts/floods/earthquakes/tsunamis/erupting volcanoes. No and thank you!)


Still Life in Spring

Have you ever seen a flowerfall?
The way the petal spills down the rocks,
a bouquet of white and purple icicles.

The cherry blossoms unfold like origami—
one day baby buds, the next busty blooms,
then their color drips away like waterlogged paper.

The sky’s painted blue; somebody forgot
to erase the smudges of white and with one stroke
a blur of purple-gray thunder shatters the illusion.

Not even the ground is still—
she crawls with ants, writhes with worms,
cracks from the dry days all too firm.

The tomcat stands petrified in the field;
the hawk swoops down; the dog bites dirt
as the mice wait for the rain to come down.

***

Let’s chat! What does your typical spring weather usually look like? Do you prefer sunshine or rainy days? What’d you think of the poem?

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