there is wind this morning,
backed by clear bright light,
just enough to move
the clouds I see
along the mountain arm.
they are solid burghers,
nothing flimsy, without
wings or tails in flight
yet they are bordered brilliantly,
as though the light is urging them
to weightlessness and speed,
to dance across the day
and play there with the sun
Category Archives: poetry
Soon
I sit in sun below a trellis
hung with jasmine
growing from a thick gray
twist of trunk
upper tendrils branch
green and lush budded
some just opened
their aroma floating out
on soft island drafts
trailers of delight
to lull us later
into perfumed sleep
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for day 28 of NaPoWriMo 2014
warmth
there are
bright flowers here,
blooms that seek the sun
not with the urgency I feel
after an eastern winter,
but with an easy thrust
and surfer’s nonchalance
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note: the profusion of blooming things & colors on Alameda is almost overwhelming. for Day 27 of NaPoWriMo 2014.
poem & photo copyright © 2014 KH Rantilla.
the watcher
a lightning blaze of white
bisects his loving gaze
certain that the work he craves
lies with his people,
center of a now-rich world
in which he rests but lightly,
keeps watch often,
accepts kisses freely given
knows he has a place
forever.
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my son’s dog, Helo, is a smart, loving border collie pit mix. for day 26 of NaPoWriMo 2014.
clouds observed
at three miles up
ahead of our approach
clouds lie below
in lakes and ponds,
captive in still water
then morph to rippled
mercury from overhead
at four miles up
there is a gathering
of shapes and streaks
that overlay
emerging spring
and new sown crops
in game board green
and brown
at five miles up
the cotton candy skeins
and contrails loop
their downy shards,
above a layer
of pillowed white
at six miles up
we climb to leave
some windy bumps
from storms well masked
by gray, swept into
comb tracked dips
at seven miles up
there is a view of
earth again, at dusk,
our flight path is a
well lit layer.
we chase the sun
and distant clouds
between the deep blue
dome of space above
and purpling land below
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I wondered if a poem would come on this flight. it did. For day 24 of NaPoWrimo 2014
breathing
this new season
takes slow breaths
deep, silent, fresh
shaking off,
at times impatiently
the frozen crust
that claimed us all
for far too long
there is only gentleness
in her morning sighs today,
soft rain drops light
on flowers, birds and grass
and in my thoughts
startled, I see lilac buds
and they are green,
surely not since yesterday?
but, yes they are,
a swift and stealthy
gift from spring
and I bloom too
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spring is mercurial as we all know. two steps forward… for Day 23 of NaPoWriMo.
riding earth
the dogs and I emerge
and head for freedom
tunneled through our woods,
a path of rich delights,
the sights and smells of life
lived on another scale,
returning home
renewed
today I feel connected
beyond my simple paradise,
as this glorious ship
sails through
the light and dark of space
as we live on her, taking
more than giving, plucking
fruits that may not
always grow again
and though some care,
the press of each day’s life
forces most to singular survival
not sure, or even caring
that the aggregated slag
of heedless use
will surely leach away
her life blood
and then ours
unless we love
our mother, steadfast
and protect her still rich bounty
simply for the joy
it brings us now
we will surely have denied
the birthright of
those loved ones
not yet born
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I have always loved the connectedness I feel on earth day. For Day 22 of NaPoWriMo 2014.
bright shadows
a snowless moon, if full
is no less bright
with patterned shadows
stretching over grass
and creeping up the outer walls,
those dark, strong arms
that cast their reach
like rod and line
out over streams,
a weightless overlay,
yet angular and hard.
my room is bright,
the window’s echo
stands in bold relief
against the wall,
angled down in stark perspective
as the moon begins to set.
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the moon, nearly full last night, cast amazing shadows both inside and outside, which stayed with me until I woke up this morning. Day 18 of NaPoWriMo 2014.
Venus waiting
From my pillow, just awake
I saw the eastern sky,
spread clear and pale behind
still leafless trees,
hung with a glowing light
among their limbs.
I first thought to deny
this star so close to sunrise,
then felt its beacon’s pull,
guiding me to daylight
from the darkness of a dream
so gladly left.
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the first view of the day ahead is often evocative for me. This morning Venus was hanging in the trees, as though waiting for me to wake up. She gradually faded as the sun drew nearer and my dark dream receded.
showers
this morning I wake up to rain
with tear-dense clouded skies,
and feel as though I’ve slept in vain
not sleepy, no, just heavy eyes
a heart that lightens more each moment,
slowly I begin to move, first thoughts like sighs
today, a gift, is mine, sufficient,
hoping for some joy, I know its feel
certain that I’m not omniscient
but richer both in spirit and in will
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15th day poetry prompt, a terza rima. I am not comfortable with rhyme, but getting there.
The Raid
We think she ambled up our hill
and grabbed the seed bin
left outside our door
then took her prize down to
the stream-cut woods
behind the house to feast
Our feeders are aswarm again
returning snowbirds and
winter stalwarts busy feeding
none of whom would care she came
unless denied their food
But the squirrels and I are glad
that she was choosy in her way
Do you think if I asked nicely
she would return my scoop?
fermenting love
shall we raise love’s goblet now,
so soon, to drink raw wine
this vintage newly casked,
or should we free
our senses to absorb
time’s sun and water,
ripening our feelings gently
matching nature’s earthy rhythm,
gathered in at peak and pressed,
their bursting essence flowing into
stout oak cradles to ferment
and morph to richness
on the tongue and in the heart,
is this not worth the wait?
note: this is an Anacreontic, a poem about love and wine. done with no set meter or rhythm. Today’s prompt on the NaPoWriMo.com site.
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poem and photograph © 2014 KH Rantilla. all rights reserved.
Life With Horace 