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A Summer Hour

A burgeoning bush, some butterflies,
Low wooden steps, warped, faded, rise
Amid the calm of idle talk—
The blur of shadows on the walk.
Sometimes a passing, random thought
Within winged fantasy is caught,
While puffed clouds in a bowl of blue
Lie quiet in the overview.
Inconsequential bits of light
Form auras there, against the night.

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The White Moth Hunter

Above, in frigid air, a white moth there
Circles about, a crystalline white flake,
To find you, living by a frozen lake.
Drawn out by winter sun white moths freeze stiff—
You marvel from your perch. But I say if
In real life you should happen on that moth
In human form, so sensitive that both
Of you could trace the sky, your ties below
Would make you feel the creature had to go;
This thing too beautiful to live. A rout
Might clear your conscience, drive the memories out
And bring a sort of peace. In any case,
You’d cancel out its space, and so erase.

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The Light Is From Mozart

Curtains hang like light,
Semi-sheer and fine;
Diffusing sharper sight
As light pours down like wine.

Peaches in a bowl
Glister, rounded there;
Each circumference whole
In the placid air.

Improvisations, faint
Sparkling of Mozart
Resound, transpose in paint
An image of his heart.

previously publish in Expansive Poetry Online

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Sally Cook is both a poet and a painter of magical realism. Her poems have also appeared in Blue Unicorn, First Things, Chronicles, The Formalist Portal, Light Quarterly, National Review, Pennsylvania Review, TRINACRIA, and other electronic and print journals. A six-time nominee for a Pushcart award, in 2007 Cook was featured poet in The Raintown Review. She has received several awards from the World Order of Narrative and Formalist Poets, and her Best American Poetry Challenge-winning poem “As the Underworld Turns” was published in Pool. 

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9 Responses

  1. Roy Eugene Peterson

    Sally, so good to see some or your precious poems again. Your rustic, bucolic poetry entrances with beautiful depth of thought and words.

    Reply
  2. Joseph S. Salemi

    To all our readers:

    Sally Cook is still in rehab, and will not be able to comment here. She has asked me to thank you in advance for whatever you may post about her poems. Please pray for her recovery.

    Reply
  3. Morrison Handley-Schachler

    These are three beautiful descriptive poems, Sally. I love the way that you capture the delicate nature of light in all three and the fragility of the moth. All best wishes for your future recovery.

    Reply
  4. Julian D. Woodruff

    Models of economy and sensitive observation, all 3. Thank you, Sally, and speedy return to full health!

    Reply
  5. Cynthia Erlandson

    These are lovely pictures of winged things, and of Mozart’s music. “Sometimes a passing random thought / Within winged fantasy is caught” is an especially wonderful way of putting something invisible into a visible image.

    Reply
  6. Margaret Coats

    Nice “Summer Hour,” Sally. Long ago I used to watch “puffed clouds in a bowl of blue” when school was out for summer. Hope you are mending well in rehab so as to be out and about this coming summer. Will say a Memorare for your recovery!

    Reply
  7. Cheryl A Corey

    “A Summer Hour” is a lovely poem that perfectly evokes a relaxed ambiance. I especially like “puffed clouds in a bowl of blue”.

    Reply
  8. Shamik Banerjee

    Great craft, Sally! Summer Hour and The Light is From Mozart are my favourite. The first took me to the setting itself, held my hand, and walked. The second provided a sense of comfort and ease!

    Reply
  9. Susan Jarvis Bryant

    I always appreciate a Sally Cook poem, and these three are a treat for the soul and the senses. I especially like “The White Moth Hunter” for its ethereal aura and exquisite imagery… “This thing too beautiful to live” has touched my heart with its otherworldly delicacy. I miss you, my friend, and I’m most certainly praying for your recovery – Mike too!

    Reply

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