Love Poem For a Place and a Girl

photo by Allison Tardio

She understands this place;

she understands me.

We walk the wooden boards in silence

and let Nature speak.

The creek eases past Cypress knees,

anchoring trees who have stood

peaceful witness

through lifetimes come and gone.

"Look," she says. "The paw paws are nearly ripe."

I inhale their tropical musk 

and reach for her hand.

submitted for Imaginary Garden With Real Toads, Fireblossom Fridays, Lights, Camera, Love!

Nature's Music

source

Serenity surrender to restless ruminations

I return to the feral forest where rests make music's metre

Wooden sun bleached boards carry me through sighing Cypress

Moments and measures play longer by the cadence of the creek

Waterstriders wade like tiny persons paddling

Raucous red bellied woodpecker spies russet red tailed hawk

Bullfrogs burp; spring beauties blush. Senses soar like swallowtails.

submitted for Poetic Bloomings, In Form Poet, Alliterisen (Complex)

A Trio of Tanka

source

Snipping back dry sprigs

Dirt under my fingernails

Scent of rosemary

Winter's unruly blanket

Shelters spring's tidy green growth

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Great blue heron prints

Raccoon trails under boardwalk

Deer hooves pressed in mud

Hieroglyphics of the wild

What is lost in translation?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tiny white flowers

Paint over winter's canvas

Pure as spring snowfall

Come summer, white becomes red

Innocence becomes passion

Submitted for Imaginary Garden With Real Toads, Format Challenge (Tanka)

Spring, Battle Creek Cypress Swamp

image source

 Tiny spring peepers

Chirp love songs from the Cypress

Bull frog bass back beat

Mayapple leaves spread

Catching cool raindrops falling

Umbrellas for toads

Ethereal mist

Blankets buds, warbler takes wing

Traveler on Earth

submitted for Imaginary Garden With Real Toads, A Word With Laurie, Ethereal

and Old Pond A Frog Leaps In
and 

Written for The Haiku Challenge 2012 - Day 19 – February 19th – Theme: Seasons Type: Kigo

Autumn, Battle Creek Cypress Swamp

photo by Allison Tardio

Carpet of green

cypress needles under my feet

soft and sweet

Paw paw leaves

like fairy fans

their strange fruit overhead

or squished underfoot

overripe and candy sticky

Fallen logs

studded with faux seashells

the air heady with their musk

The creek gambols

over cypress knees

tickling

mud turtles

singing duets

with green frogs

Here

the world is

brown and green

lush and clean

I inhale
its essence.

submitted for We Write Poems, #73, I Smell Poem Pie

Battle Creek Cypress Swamp

photo by Temari 2010

The trees are older than our cares

I walk beneath a cypress sky

I hear the barred owl's plaintive cry

And soon forget the day's affairs.

The birds and frogs sing joyful prayers

 The breeze breathes like a lover's sigh

The trees are older than our cares

I walk beneath a cypress sky.

I spy a young deer unawares

 The cypress watch us live and die

The creek keeps flowing by and by
Its secrets with the earth it shares

The trees are older than our cares.

submitted for: One Stop Poetry Form-Rondel

                     One Shot Wednesday-Week 38

                     Thursday Poets Rally