12/31/09






the sound of deep winter no sound




12/27/09




on the table
a knuckle's worth of nuts --
over-indulgence


12/21/09

Solstice Rose
photograph by poet/artist


snow and ice burn through
the brief daylight hours --

the arc is complete




12/19/09





snows surge
up the coast --
the urge to nap overwhelms




12/17/09





bone-cracking cold descends --
Debussey warms the house


12/14/09





icy shards
pure color
petals break off at my touch --



12/6/09




wind whispers in the trees
earth expectant
we embrace an old friend -- snow



11/27/09




waters choppy under grey skies
anger surges over the dinner table --
Thanksgiving Day


11/23/09

renaissance
original photography by artist/poet


tired petals swirl in the wind --
met by drifts of woodsmoke








resort town in late autumn
homeless shamble
leaves skitter down main street --



11/16/09





so many stars like kisses blown by the moon --

* * *



battalion of geese
taking wing --
tiny skidmarks on the sky




11/10/09

A slight departure . . .

Although I have created this blog to celebrate haiku, I also would like -- from time to time -- to expand into other poetic expressions. This is all new to me. It is only in the last few years that I find myself turning more and more to poetry. I find that the cadence and rhythms soothe and often allay fears of despair.

So I will navigate slowly into this new territory, feeling my way as if in the dark . . .

Today, as I drove to work I passed a number of wetland areas and fallow fields. The sky was a lowering grey mass of clouds but the air has been warm these past few days. The colors are now subdued into soft ambers and rust, and trees appear to be made of worn leather and chamois if the light hits just right.

I love this hush-filled time of November, our respite before the holidays go full swing. It is a time of bittersweet melancholy, of remembrance, of stories and tales, of ancient songs that strike a chord yet are seemingly unknown. It is the time of bercuse, the French lullaby, of the nocturne and the adagio, of the slow dance towards winter . . .

Deep History

beneath mists
of woodsmoke
fields languish,

dreaming of
deep histories and ancient melodies,

of travelers' feet and
tillers' plows,
of brambles and bracken and
of seeds sown from pockets
torn,

of countless wide blue summers
of harvests reaped and
of a new green that is yet to come --




11/4/09


tall grasses
wrestle with the wind --
getting tangled in the sheets

10/27/09





in just one breath
last leaf falls
sky opens wide --




* * *



harvest time
bees in final delirium --
then the blue of deep sleep




10/24/09

Last Rose
original photography by poet




mellow light
warming petals
the last rose - -





10/19/09





slender hoops

bent birches --

not easy to be caressed by snow and ice




(we had a freak snowstorm yesterday -- October 18!)




10/14/09




the patchwork of melody

holds a trundling shuffle that
recalls dusty roads
of tired limbs coping --




10/2/09




sleeping behemoths
looming large --
the mountains!





9/27/09

sun touches the horizon
slides from sight
my fingers gather small pebbles



* * *


in the garden
dead-heading marigolds --
their rusty smell embedded
in my fingers


* * *


arashi
wind-driven rain
silks that wrap and fold
the storm within --

9/18/09

climbing ivy
russet and gold --
love lines from the earth

9/17/09

on the deck
flip-flops warming in the sun
another year before
I feel that feeling . . .

9/9/09


paint brush rests
by my side --
shaft of light breaks
sparrow-gray skies

9/7/09

i smell old dreams
they grip my heart
then slowly sink --
no peace tonight

9/2/09

here is my song --
last blossom
such joy
yet so fleeting

8/21/09





old jalopy stripped
only the chassis remains
someone's glory days --




8/19/09

the road curves wide ascending
vistas open up --
breathing eases now


* * *


spires of loosestrife
cornflowers and goldenrod --
color-stippled roads

8/18/09



Mimosa Blossom
digitally altered photograph
by poet



the scent of mimosa
catches one
after the fact --

a bit like love

8/13/09

shadows scrape
the edge of lawn --
dinner dishes in the sink



* * *


small fly sits
at the open window
summer is closing down




8/7/09

dry stalks shrouded
in greenery

sweet peas and bindweed
clamber and frisk



8/3/09



black ant scurries
across a creamy white
constellation --

queen anne's lace




the darkness holds sound

little gifts
dispersed on the night air

sweet cadence . . .



7/28/09




diamonds sparkle
raindrops captured
on the screen --
tears of an old woman


* * *

goldfinch and tiger lily
the colors -- yellow and orange -- blaze!


* * *

spin cycle
rotation
time measured
cyclists click by
the hour curves round --


* * *

hugs and kisses
the fragrant herbs of love --
children play in the garden


* * *

yarns weave
needles click
and memory rests
her burden by the fire --











7/20/09


memories fall through
the fissures of my heart

cicada rubs its song -




7/16/09

whispery calm
descends

evening light pearled
a smell of
fresh melon



pine trees at dusk
are sad things

dark silhouettes draped
against the
gloaming--




7/9/09

(original artwork by author)

storm coming on
seething, roiling
driven by north winds
but birds still sing!





7/7/09

(original artwork by author)


across a moonlit sandy stretch

the scent of honeysuckle
slips by –



7/5/09


bright yellow dips
past the pines

goldfinch chuckles
at the thought of summer

6/25/09




petaled faces search
for the sunlight

I turn, watching
a dragonfly



6/24/09


maple leaves lean
weeping on the lawn

geese fly
on the wings of winter



6/23/09




shadows sway
on the grass,
green and yellow –

small crow
announces dinner