Yellow sun lightens
upon sandy soft coastline
maintained by machines
Weekly Prompts Colour Challenge – Yellow by Sue W & Gerry C
Yellow Machines
On a Gust of Wind
Life sails on a gust of wind;
light and buoyant as a feather.
It observes its surroundings,
embracing the journey.
The wind accelerates.
Life wrestles the wind;
compelling it to slow down
or change direction,
but the wind knows its own destiny.
Tenuous as a feather,
life senses a change;
a slackening of the wind.
Life drifts on a gentle breeze.
The last breath of wind
hums the feathery blues,
as it carries life to the finish line.
A Cento: Herons at Sunrise
I climbed through woods in the hour-before-dawn dark;
I wandered lonely as a cloud,
from purple forest to golden sky;
a thin wet sky, that yellows at the rim,
and meets with sun-lost lip the marsh’s brim.
Cold water-mouths move and sing
and the night herons brood in their heronry like yoga masters.
Tell me is there anything lovelier?
I resisted the mad impulse to put them into a golden cage
and to catch one is to know. Know what?…
love written on the dusky wing.
Poems are made by fools like me.
The birds have less to say for themselves.
I. J.’s Birds of the Week Invitation LXXI
W3 Prompt #114: Wea’ve Written Weekly’s poet of the week, Dawn, prompts us to write a cento on the theme of love. “Essentially, a cento is composed of lines of poetry from other poets’ works. For this prompt, please weave together as many lines of poetry from other people’s poems (of your choice) as you’d like.”
I have chosen lines from the following poems:
“The Horses” by Ted Hughes
“I Wandered Lonely As a Cloud” by William Wordsworth
“At Dawn” by Alfred Noyes
“Marshlands” by Emily Pauline Johnson
“Marsh Leaf” by David R. Wagner
“Dispatches from Devereux Slough” by Mark Jarman
“Greenness” by Angelina Weld Grimké
“Ode To My Socks” by Pablo Neruda
“Memory-Wax, Knowledge-Bird” by Kristy Beachy Quick
“Trees” by Joyce Kilmer
“A Line-storm Song” by Robert Frost
Family Picnic
Family visits
hot summer celebrations
for new beginnings
and generations of old
babies and great grandparents
Wished for swimming pools
excessive heat comes in waves
local lakes too warm
Deftly prepped with love
chilled in refrigerator
watermelon chunks
for the family picnic
sweet pink juice dribbling down chins
Colleen’s 24 Seasons Syllabic Poetry Challenge, No. 41
Colleen prompts us to incorporate the following kigo phrases into our syllabic poetry:
- #1: “summer celebrations”
- #2: “swimming pools”
- #3: “melons” (watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew, etc.)
Featured photo generated by Microsoft.
Lanceleaf Arrowhead
New world perennial found in swamps and marshes. Most common in eastern North America. Also known as a “duck potato” due to it being a tuber producing plant.
Cee’s Flower of the Day Challenge (FOTD). Welcome back, Cee!
On the Water
While we destroy nature’s habitats, nature is working toward ridding precarious human habitations. We continue to flock toward manmade playgrounds that consume limited water supplies, taxing desert reservoirs that are already drying up from rising temperatures. We build mini-mansions on cleared mountainside cliffs that can no longer absorb the water from torrential downpours, contributing to catastrophic landslides. We house thousands of families in multilevel buildings alongside rising oceans and rivers, while record breaking storms bring catastrophic flooding. Yet, it is a chance many of us are willing to take for a little taste of paradise on the water.
Thanks to habitat restoration initiatives and parkland acquisition, many native plants and animals that live in and around water are managing to cohabitate with humans.
Lens-Artists Challenge #306 – Habitat hosted by Tina
Infamous Greed
His ship did not display skull and crossbones
Yet he was a pirate just the same
Siphoning funds from the exploitable
Hiding behind his cloak of fame
A confident stride and a charming smile
Was all that backed his assurances
When all went down and fraud was found
He unwaveringly claimed innocence
Corporation thus seized
Bank accounts frozen
He boarded his ship
And fled by ocean
With a stash of cash
He had stolen
This poem portrays a fictional character, addressing generally the corporate, political and religious greed of certain high powered individuals exploiting their communities. The featured photo is just a random shot of a man enjoying a nice day out on his boat.
Sultry Voyage
Cold winter days
elicit sultry dreams
Voyages to tropical destinations
where palm trees blow in soft ocean breezes
and saffron sunrises convey promise
Redhead
I photographed these North American diving ducks while they were wintering at a natural pond in the Miami zoo. Redheads tend to winter in the southern and eastern regions of the United States, Mexico and the Caribbean. Spring migration brings them further north and west in the U.S. and into Canada to breed. The male appears to be banded, which I assume is for research purposes.
I. J.’s Birds of the Week Invitation LXX
Transient Waters
Transient calm waters
Destined to be disturbed
Little ripples form
Growing, spreading
Gaining momentum
Flowing, churning
Dams built for containment
Merely temporary barriers
Rising over, spilling
Unconstrained and free
I contentedly ride the rapids
Cooled by the spraying mist
W3 Prompt #113: Wea’ve Written Weekly poet of the week, Sarah, prompts us to “Compose an ekphrastic poem inspired by any image of a body of water (ocean, waterfall, lake, etc.). The image you select may be a photo you have taken, art you have created, or any other image you like.”
JJJ Interactive Books 