Beauty

. Devotions Night after night, for nigh a year, When bedtime came, we’d watch our child Be overcome by his emotions: From glee, to rage, to childish fear, And us both stumped: What drove him so wild __And triggered these explosions? He needed more than bedtime prayer To climb down...

. Lamplights at Dusk  Along the tree-lined lane, I walk at dusk, On pavement gray, well-washed by autumn showers, And watch the fading day discard its husk, As countless leaves cascade from russet bowers. Beneath their noble, outstretched arms I stroll From pool to pool of light along the way Cast...

. The Painter  The moment when a painting is complete, He starts another piece without delay Like respiration—take a breath; repeat. Without this passion, he won't last a day. While Nature keeps on working tirelessly To make the world replete with variations, This painter's life has no diversity Except in...

. The Last Petal In a garden old and wise, Where blooms and seasons intertwine, A rose stood tall against the skies, Its petals bright, its heart divine. But time, unseen, began to stir, A single petal loosed its hold, And with it fell a whispered word, A story ending,...

. The Father of All Lights "Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow" ---James 1:17 How much more to please him, then, __The Father of all lights, We should---if so...

. Oaks of Righteousness “That they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the LORD…”  ---Isaiah 61:3 What stories shared between these gnarled trees, What secrets shared twixt these and smiling breeze Softly singing, “So much more left to see…” Rustling, roused, rising to a mighty shake; Rooting,...

. August, at Your Pleasure The year, by August, late in middle age,gives knowing winks to autumn as the goldof summer sun and wheat fields turn the page,as youth, prolonged by zest, lets loose its hold. Recall those Augusts past, upon a beachin Albion---the sand, the sea, the dune;of innocence...

. Follow the Miracle A random head-turn? Vector wind deflection? Or was it truly heavenly protection? His head came close to being torn asunder Yet he survived! I have to wonder If Trump was saved by divine intervention. This strange event has captured my attention; And since it happened, I...

. Viracocha Viracocha made the world, __He made it in a day. A day in Viracocha’s life __Would leave you old and gray, So when he’d finished making it __He must sit down and play. Viracocha made the world, __He made it in a minute. He was so pleased with...

. Valediction for a Critic "She can second-guess the sixth sense of a poem." —Seamus Heaney "I thought—and still think—that all people would like poetry if they were only brought up with it and shown how easily it is entered into, and what enormous solace it has to offer." —Helen...

. To September Your fields and groves are lushly emerald still; Your flowers still waft their scents and vaunt their flair; Your blazing rays still generously spill; Your winds still gently breathe their balmy air. But now your verdure slowly, subtly fades And droops with languor, sated to its fill;...

. Solitaire A fresh tableau gives hope of gaining traction In the builds. Shortly, though, you see you’re beat. It’s like life: strangely rich the satisfaction Of having dealt your own unique defeat. . . Bird Brain I’d settle for an avian brain If in the bargain came the gift...

. Over the Hill Now that you’re "over the hill," Relax. Enjoy the view. Life’s a beach, so chill. Work? You’ve had your fill. It’s time to just do you; And now that you’re over the hill, You’ve better ways to fill The coming days. Your new Life’s a beach,...

. Flora's England The hedgerows droop with bulbous berries black As feathers of the Raven in the sun Of August, glowing hot upon his back. He soars above the corn, its growing done. While Lammas songs are sung in hamlet fields, The sickles swing and slice a background beat That...

. A Prayer in Three Quatrains Too well I know, I am a son of error; Too well I know the weakness of my frame. Yet still I plead, Lord, save me from this terror; And of Thy mercy, blot out all my shame. A worm, I plead in squirming...

. The Traveler I walked along a dusty road, The night was long and cruel and cold. When suddenly upon the path, I came across a speck of gold. I picked it up in sheer delight, And stumbled to a broken inn. Yet when I asked to stay the night,...

. Common Brief I watch the leaves awaken in the wood behind our home, as daybreak crawls along the trees, and shafts of sunlight penetrate the canopy. The leaves are motionless, but soon enough they’ll shake off sleep and dress for work, which is their God-appointed state. Though relatively frail,...

. I Have Waited for September I have waited for September When the stars shine silver white; When the sun with trepidation Chases off the cold of night. Farmers seek to reap their harvest: All the golden grain that grows; Man and beast shall nightly shiver From their midriff to...

. Cicada Serenade Boys hang their beat on the heat of the summer. Sticky days twang with their thick, tinny ring. Banshee crescendos and thrums from each drummer Shiver mesquites where the mockingbirds sing. Noons throb and drone with the buzz of winged minstrels Crooning a tune of cacophonous zeal....

. Supply and Demand Infinite happiness isn’t available. Something so precious just isn’t that scalable. Boundless dismay, though, is much more attainable. Being uncoveted, pain is quite gainable. . . Off Day The best that I can do today Is leak a sigh of lost dismay And wish that it...

. Dante in Modern Times If I were Dante, and the quest were mine To reprise chapters of his Comedie For modern times, perhaps no less Divine For being steeped in modern tragedie, I’d start with Hell, where sinners roast in fires Fueled by falsehoods told, retold and spun Into...

. Recipe for a Poem Scraped clean of glib and warty observation, On pristine paper place one piercing thought. Add in the fragrant oil of concentration, Simmer in meaning. When the blend you sought Requires further action verbs to savor, And phrases come together in a form, Add adjectives, if...

. Clouds Over Skye Vast mounting clouds rise over peak and vale; Their shifting billows filter noonday´s beams, Which pierce the spectral haze, so wispy pale, And flood the hollow, where a wee tarn gleams. The interplay of orbs spread out in space, Gargantuan beyond all human thought, Creates this...

. For All Who Labor by Christine de Pisan (1364-c. 1430) Lady, fair branch where God’s grace blooms,Our labors, Saint Bernard assumes,Are benefited by your taskTo help those who ply hoes or broomsWhen night falls and when day resumes.Our guiding star and shield, now askFor all who labor on the...

. Garden Party The sparrows near the feeder flit and preen While predators politely quit the scene. A mockingbird is chirping up a storm, And soft drinks on the cart are getting warm. The worms beneath the mulch are lying low, But old cock robin knows just where to go...

. Observation ____Comes morning, __And fog fills the forest Where bluebirds are wet on the wings. ____The toadstools __Are soaking up moisture, One cricket in solitude sings. ____The fog lifts __And drifts like a phantom; Trees are subdued in a shroud. ____A vapor __Descends low and lower To hang o'er...

. Ode to the Zeer Across the Sahel states, the humble zeer, A pear-shaped or full-bellied earthen pot Strains muddy water, turns it cool and clear Beneath a tree or other shady spot. Constructed from alluvium and clay, It’s reddish-ochre hue’s a welcome sight To travellers and thirsty passers-by, Or...

. Autumn Fades The orange leaves decay to crinkling gray, And sunsets sink and fade the clouds to black. “You’ll see them all in Heaven,” so they say. The decades start to dwindle, day by day. Time whips the weary world along its track. The orange leaves decay to crinkling...

. Hard To Tell With attributes that only those who know him understand, A countenance deceptive, and a being hard to gauge, Within what seems indifference, in the still and quiet man May lurk a warrior’s courage---and the wisdom of a sage. . . Lightning Bugs Wafting through the quiet...

. Leave Above the land, suspended, green and grand and splendid, we furnish food for trees, whisper with the breeze till cold winds bluster in and we turn harlequin. Now that we’re on the ground, you tote your toys around, which scrape us up or, roaring, send us whirling, soaring....

. Tranquil Tokonoma One thing a perfect purple rose cannot Accomplish is a type of sadness.  Man Is best at that.  That is mankind’s special blot. The plants and animals have learned to ban Such uselessness.  They settle in their fur Or leaves and just get on with life and...

. Emergence A child within the chrysalis, __awaiting to emerge. __Fruition and desire, __hoping to converge. The years prove long and arduous __and obstacles demanding, __with journeys full of strife __and lessons notwithstanding. Despite the labyrinth of thorns, __the roses always bloom. __And golden days prevail __amongst the gray and...

. Patient in a Nursing Home Such a frantic brilliance in the flagpole’s banging chain! I’m blind, __confined, ____but now I know: Winter’s here again. . . After the Funeral Her shoes capsized on the floor by the door, Abandoned clothes make a trail through the place. The cat, her...

. Phoebus I saw the sun catch in your hair, Your silhouette against the glare. I heard your laughter rise and fall And shatter in the frozen air. The sun sank down behind the trees Yet brighter suns burned in your eyes. You set the darkened woods agleam With secret...

. An Invitation While treading my locality's __New-slathered pavement grass, There came a flying, loud "hello" __From sprightly Mr. Das. "Black skies. It seems a squall will lash __Our town," he said to me. "Come, get inside. We'll treat ourselves __To gingered pu'er tea." The first "no" is for etiquette....

. Across a Strong Bridge upon the marriage of two friends In a weary world that's grown quite old, Where men grow weak, and thought grows cold, Two hearts can make one serious dent For virtue strong. As cool as mint--- Transforming ice, into this force: Connecting love---a Cross, of course....

. Hope Hope feels so strange these days, at times a bit Like something old that now no longer fits; It’s stretched beyond repair and somewhat scratchy And moths have made of it such daily bread That even its most solid parts feel patchy, Its former comforts weak and thinly...

. Mud Our clip-on angel wings are cast from shards of glass, The sorry hymns we sing are drowned in blaring brass. It’s not that we are crazed as we rub our magic rings, but our spirit has been caged by a lifetime’s mud that clings. Though we grandly theorise...

. The Web of Sustenance __Voraciously the lion feeds, But leaves the scraps for jackals and hyenas— __To each according to its needs, In Nature’s sprawling tawny-grass arenas. __The residue will nourish seeds Selected to renew the vast savanna. __By sundry means at different speeds: To every living tribe its...

. The Leper “When Jesus came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed him. A man with leprosy came and knelt before him and said, 'Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.' Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. 'I am willing,' he said. 'Be...