Beckoning the Snow (Nature Poem)

Beckoning the Snow

 

A dreary day

So I thought, on my way to the park

I always liked to stroll through the woods

Next to the Limestone Creek

There in the fall I would see the

Colorful reflections of the sugar maples

And sweet gum flaming foliage

There in the waters I could see the red roots

Yes even the roots are dark red

 

But today I am late

Now the trees are totally nude

Now these benevolent trees

With luxurious crowns have no castes,

No names, they all coalesced into

One single community: a cluster of gray

Tall standing meditating monks

Except the evergreens

The entire park looked forlorn

There are no children on the swings

Nor any adults in the ballpark

And of course, the irksome pesky mosquitoes

Are absent too

Suddenly the sun shone briefly

Again it all turned cloudy

But the soil under my feet

Whispered a different tale

The earth has been longing

For the arrival of winter snow –

“Now I have discorded all my jewels

And dresses, don’t remind me about

The long tresses of willows

The luxurious silky golden crowns of honey locusts

And the soft pastel colors of sumac tops

Oh, the last colored dress or was it some

Intricate motif designed by the Benarasi silk weavers

I had the most gorgeous sari draped over me

With the cool clear eyes of blue lake looking at

The heavens

I have worked hard over the summer

To provide all my children and grand children

Now I want only your tight heavy embrace

Cover me totally and take me into your cool hands

I am weary with overwork and now I want to lie

Idly, with my own internal thoughts and feelings

Now I have to rejuvenate myself – for my own hidden roots

Lakes and streams

I have to keep all my little children

The rabbits, chipmunks, bears, and beavers

All snug, warm, and dry

Now everyone listen carefully

Be quiet, the lights are out

Rest and sleep happily

You need to conserve energies and food

For the long drawn winter

The fury winds from the North

Will be here any moment

Hide, hurry up, and put on

Insulation, all of you

 

Dear darling, come soon, with glowing symmetrical

Soft snowflakes

When you come, be careful and gentle

There will be a tender dianthus

A late blooming mum

The still green common mullein

And the fresh fronds of spotted fern

Be gentle to them

Also you’ll find glossy smooth mossy patches

On the lime stones and mounds

Do not be rough and tread carelessly

On those bare breasts of mine” Copyright 2021 by the author

Farewell To The Autumn

Farewell To The Autumn

This morning

I was idly watching -

Through the inert gas filled insulated 

Double pane glass sliding door

At

The brick red painted deck

The season is slowly turning

Colder and drier by the day

Now in the backyard 

All the trees are nude, baring their brittle

Gray barks and ribbed trunks -

Like the dry skin on my calf

A lone squirrel holding a dry bronze

Maple leaf between its tiny jaws

Perhaps for building home 

For its naked young -

It’s the only silent activity 

I notice from here

But the sour morning mood

And the leady overcast day

Got suddenly lighted 

And buoyed

By a shy blue jay

Pecking at the abandoned pots.

The dried pumpkin vine on the

Electric-blue painted

Wooden parapet appeared inviting too -  

To

The feathered darlings

With open heart; with its stretched out banner

Of large dehydrated circular paper leaves.

The deck with the leftover autumn 

Crispy-potato-chip-like dry leaves

(It)

Is a bit disconcerting to the

Civilized eye with its own rules 

And scales

Of beauty, symmetry, and cleanliness.

Yet

The crested blue jay

And

A pair of slate-colored juncos

Tucking at the dry amaranth seeds

What a glorious morning sight!

Just across the glass door

On the deck we’ve three winged guests

If an average person looks

At our deck – he wouldn’t approve

There is disorder everywhere

The plastic pots from the summer

Kitchen garden

Traces of successful eggplant growth

And a big blue bin with leftovers from

The pumpkin vine

The straw-like rope still hanging 

And piles of dried maple leaves

Yet

There is beauty all around

A beauty sensed by the inner eye

It only got enhanced by my

Avian visitors

You don’t need binoculars

To look at these lovely birds, up so close they’re

There, standing in our warm home

We saw ‘em all

A small downy woodpecker 

The blue jay and the migrating junco couple

Heaven is not what you think,

Dream, or design. 

Heaven happens with what you’ve

With what’s available now

Right now, in front of you

When all life is peaceful around

When nature bears

The weight of seasons without complaint;

Sadly

Man cannot adjust

And live without discordance

And time is slipping away fast

The juncos tell me winter

Is almost here.  © 2020 by the author