A colonnade, oasis, place to rest
From Summer heat, a visitor obsessed.
It hasn’t been here long but plans to stay
Until the Autumn sighs with cooler days.
Awating temperature’s more temperate fall,
I make this colonnade my port of call!
—
This one follows Walter’s prompt at
dVerse,
inspired by this line from T.S. Eliot’s “The Waste Land”:
“With a shower of rain; we stopped in the colonnade (…)”
But a Summer Colonnade sounds like a dance to me! Or a refreshing drink!
Happy Solstice and a brilliant full moon here in the Northern hemisphere tonight!
This poem does not fit the prompt. We’re supposed to pick a Japanese word for “rain”. But these words are very specific, and I don’t speak Japanese. I’ve always been warned not to use words I don’t truly understand. So, I cannot choose a Japanese word for “rain” as a title. No, I have enough trouble raining on me when I write haiku or haibun, not English forms of poetry, although Heaven knows we commandeer everything as our own sooner or later! All I can say, in my native tongue of not-the-Queen’s-English, is let the rains fall where they may, and here is the haiku that is unfit, unprompted, but not unappreciated!
Pouring, cursed, bless-ed
Four seasons, with more in life
Stirring rains of change
—
Written in a nonconformist way for
dVerse.
Smiles spilling all around,
Saturating driest ground,
Calming down with softest light
Every fiery word that bites;
Laying in a bed of peace
Where Hope blooms with gentle ease.
And in the morning glow of Dawn,
We look and find new smiles have grown!
—
Another for
dVerse,
with thanks to Grace for her inspiration!
Instrument: Tempo – Seagull Excursion Folk Acoustic Guitar
(capo 4)
Soaring high above the clouds
Of chaos in my mind,
I know there is a song to sing
With words I cannot find.
I hunt and peck and try in vain
To force the music out
And feel the pangs of harsh regret
That feed the fire of doubt.
The time has come to let it go
And set the songbird free!
For only when the spirit soars
Can any songbird sing!
I learn to find the hidden nest
Of peace within my mind,
Where love consoles and lifts me over
All the thoughts that bind.
There are no words to look for here,
No melody to sing;
The music of this sacred place
The Spirit plays within.
So, take the time to let it go
And set the songbird free!
For only when the spirit soars
Can you, the songbird, sing!
Right click this link and choose “Save target as…” or similar to download. Feel free to share for noncommercial purposes only, please.
Songbird Sing Mp3.
—
“Poetics – The Music in You” is today’s prompt over at
dVerse.
Basically the exercise, for poets, is to write a song lyric instead of a poem. Read the post–I totally agree with the part about poems beaing “heard” in a speaking voice, while lyrics are not!
Most of you know by now that I’m a songwriter. However, this one is a song written more like a poem! It has melody, harmony, rhythm, and honestly, I think it turned out well! But you’ll notice it does not have a refrain or chorus. And it’s written in quatrains, those stanzas/verses of 4 lines. They rhyme, as most (all?) of my songs do. But it can be either read alone, listened to as a song, or both.
I hope you enjoy this. I couldn’t resist writing to this prompt, but the result is not what I expected! No, it is much better!
Also published in
Vision through Words
The weather affects me, whether I like it – or not. What else can truly tell me how to dress for the day? Anything but the weather itself is just someone else’s opinion. What else dictates whether I spend time outside? And if so, doing what? Playing an instrument? Riding a bike? Sledding? Only the weather can tell me; only the weather whethers the changing days.
Waking atmosphere
Bringing in the morning light
Wordless, shaping day.
My first Haibun (prose and Haiku) for
dVerse.
Breezing on their blissful, billowed sails,
“Small” boats remind us during life’s travails,
“Now buoy up! The blessings never fail!”
Weaving in the restless winds of change,
“Strong” seagulls bend with breezes in their range.
And woe to us, who find the weather strange!
—
My first Quadrille, written for
dVerse.
It’s not as breezy as it seems!
Instrument: Brio – Red Cedar Concert Ukulele
Recorded outside – listen for the birds!
Open up your ears and listen
To the Spirit you’ve been missin’.
Find a little happiness in
Someone else’s song!
God gave us ears to hear
The music of His band.
All creatures are His instruments
And played by His own hand.
Just
Open up your ears and listen
To the Spirit you’ve been missin’.
And find a little bit o’ happiness in
Someone else’s song!
God gave us hearts to feel
The beauty of His touch.
We tune them up to boundless Love
And never take too much!
Just
Open up your ears and listen
To the Spirit you’ve been missin’.
And find a little bit o’ happiness in
Someone else’s song!
The music wouldn’t be the same
Without a part or two.
So, let’s enjoy the symphony
God plays for me and you!
Open up your ears and listen
To the Spirit you’ve been missin’.
And find a little bit o’ happiness in
Someone else’s song!
God gave us eyes to see
His works in everyone.
We keep the faith and realize
His Will is always done!
Open up your ears and listen
To the Spirit never missin’.
And find a little bit o’ happiness in
Someone else’s song!
Open up your ears and listen
To that Spirit never missin’.
And find a little happiness in
Someone else’s song!
‘Cause God knows everybody’s song!
Instrument: Brio – Red Cedar Concert Ukulele
1. We look for too much seeing
And not enough believing;
Too much taking
And not enough giving;
Too much doing
And not enough being.
But that’s ok
‘Cause we can change!
Refrain:
2. We come for too much going
And not enough staying;
Too much working
And not enough playing;
Too much talking
And not enough praying.
But that’s ok
‘Cause we can change!
Refrain:
3. And we do too much forcing
And not enough letting;
Too much hurting
And not enough blessing;
Too much grudging
And not enough forgetting.
But that’s ok
‘Cause we can change!
Refrain: (Twice)
Refrain:
When we choose to change our mind
And we are ready, we find
The Truth of God’s design
Of balance and supply.
I forgot about Earth Day.
Now what does that tell you?
That Earth Day isn’t profitable?
Or promoted?
Or honored?
Yes, all these things,
And none of them.
I forgot about Earth Day.
And that tells me
I need to reconnect with this planet on which I live and breathe,
This unthinking, unassuming mother who asks for nothing,
But deserves all the abundance of Life
For sustaining our own.
I forgot about Earth Day.
But I also remembered.
So may we all,
And shower her with blessings
Even if,
Or because
She never asks!
—
Day 22/30 of
NaPoWriMo,
from the prompt to write about Earth Day, at napowrimo.net.
Instrument: Tempo – Seagull Excursion Folk Acoustic Guitar
1. Life is like a pony ride.
It’s calm and smooth at times.
But when it kicks you and throws you down,
It’s not so gentle and kind.
But
Refrain:
2. You trot through meadows with flow’rs in bloom,
And colors all ablaze.
Then slog through spongy, muddy ground
When life has turned to grey.
But
Refrain:
3. The rhythm of the clip and clop
And the beating of your heart,
They move together through this life
And up to greater parts.
So
Refrain: (Twice)
Refrain:
Get back on that pony and ride, my friend.
You won’t get where you’re goin’ unless you round the bend.
This journey has a purpose, and on that you can depend.
So get back on that pony and ride, ride, my friend.
Right click this link and choose “Save Target As…” or similar to download and save.
(Get Back on That Pony and) Ride – Mp3.
Mystical Strings 
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