Soaring: in memory of Shelly

When a precious one leaves
for no apparent reason
and life is dropped like trousers
my spirit knows I am still
embraced by my beloved one
there is no betrayal here
for leaping in and out of time
is second nature
I feel my breath more dear
missing hers
I touch my skin and
reverently live my dreams
passion keeps me here
and my hand touches hers
in a mind cathedral of light
she brightens my perception
and memories gladden my heart
as she tries out her new ethereal body
I nourish mine with wholesome food
in her honor
and laugh
(she would want me to be playfully alive)
I am etched forever in her heart and she in mine
I am her breath now
I am turbo charged with love

wildflowers

Not looking for your name
Just being here with you
and wondering if I will recognize
you when your bloom is gone
by the little leaves so bright
gathering sunshine in this deep woods
will I know you then?

Griffin

When a blue eyed dog
sleeps on top of my feet
to be sure he doesn't miss a step
and cocks his head to hear
dog language
wondering why I speak
so like the brook
and not in whines and
woofs
I know hearts are true
and love is in the world

eager summer

Impatient summer
leaping into spring
like puppies romping
dogwood not even fully bloomed
and heat wilting the blossoms
this cool night will come
and then another
so evening and early morning is all
we have left of spring
still by hidden forest trails
creeks coolly play
leaves tiny and bright
a forest shiny and new
eager for summer too

fiddle head ferns, Great Smokies spring

daffodils give way to
trilliums
while fiddle head ferns
unfurl in deep woods
creeks rush by
too swift but to glance
at this music so slowly set to time
that the beat is syncopated with silence
and the rhythm of
dark starry nights and dogwood winters and rainy boggy days
and translucent dawns

by Janice Haynes, poet