Summer poems & summer plants

Anthurium bloom

I SEE YOU!

Passing

through the house, I

spot in the shady yard

the V-shaped ears of resident

rabbit.

~ ~ ~

Baby's Breath from Mother's Day planter

TABLEAU

Robin

bathing in last

night's very-welcome rain.

A finch wades in, then out, then in

again.

~ ~ ~

Sage from Mother's Day planter

Faint sounds

of night insects

this summer morning. Rains

brought relief--and humidity,

no breeze.

~ ~ ~

Coleus from Mother's Day planter

MORNING

"Do, re

mi, mi, mi, do."

The wind chimes serenade,

the cat spies a lizard, the squirrel

searches.

~ ~ ~

Purple jew from the front bed

HAIKU

cicadas   tree frogs

and electric-meter wheel

steamy summer night

c 2018, PL d/b/a lovepat press, Benton AR USA

Sights, sounds, smells - POEMS

Yellow
blooms of lance-leaved
coreopsis litter
the lawn. Son says "Leave them." Brother:
"They're weeds!"
~ ~ ~

Fragrance

of gardenias

another perk of porch-

sitting early in the morning's

coolness.

~ ~ ~

MOM! DAD! HELP!

Its first

trip to the bird-

bath? "Now that I'm here, what

do I do?" It wades in and sips,

then stands.

~ ~ ~

Orange
canna blossom
stands as an overlord
above the mandevilla's two
pink blooms.
~ ~ ~

Bluejay

squawks, "No suet

in this feeder, lady!

and I could use some sustenance."

"Soon, sir."

~ ~ ~

First time

in a long time

I see althea blooms.

Demise of hackberry-tree shade

the cause?

~ ~ ~

Barely
audible this
early, nearly-summer
morning, a freight train trundles toward
Texas.
~ ~ ~
c 2017, PL - dba lovepat press

A spring day in cinquains-March 30 '17

Lenten Roses - photo by Uncle Norval Ziegler, Oak Ridge, TN

I. I hear

doves from across

the road. Cardinals--from

behind me--chitter. Cool after

the storm.

II. & III. Mocker

eats from the new

suet cake on a limb

of the still-bare beautyberry.

Red bird

against

the blue metal

feeder has trouble with

perching peg. I need to fill both

feeders.

IV. A large

red-headed wood-

pecker at the suet

cake until I moved to take a

photo.

V. Pink bloom

of azalea

falls onto the growing

hosta's heart. They nestle nicely.

I smile.

VI. "Please God, no fatalities"

Siren

sounding frantic

on vehicle headed

west on the freeway. Now, the air

is still.

VII. "Cloudy, but bright"

No lights

in the sky, but

plenty around. Grounded

nightlights abundant in neighbors'

acres.

VIII. "Easy to read"

With two

floodlight bulbs, my

"patio" area

is bathed in enough light that I

can write.

IX. "Contentment"

I sit

outside at night.

The yard light shows a red

bougainvillea newly blossomed.

I sigh.

THE END

Cinquains from past Novembers

I gave Lydia one small African violet and look what happened.

They are in her west window. She feeds them as she waters.

BAKING DAY

Green beans

and onion fight

with the sweet aroma

of pear cobbler & blueberry

muffins.

[2008]

~~~~

MY CHILDREN, THANKSGIVING

One in

Florida, two

at in-laws; least one home

with new baby. Thank God for Mom,

siblings.

[2001]

~~~~

THANKSGIVING

So much

is being made

of tradition this year

of fear. Togetherness--all that

matters.

[2001]

~~~~

NO CROATIONS WANTED

Fifty

miles of razor

wire fencing, protecting

Slovenia from immigration

masses.

[2015]

~~~~

LITTLE RIVER COUNTY, ARK.

Voters

okayed selling

beer, wine, marijuana*

but nixed increasing library

millage.

* for medical purposes

[2016]

~~~~

HOLIDAY DECOR

Soft glow

of the mantel

decorated for fall:

butter churn, autumn leaves, pumpkins,

gourds, nuts.

[2013]

~~~~

FIFTEEN, NOW

Fourteen

new poems flowed

from my pen while 'living'

ten days at Dairy Hollow. Am

I blest!

[2012]

~~~~

~~~~

c 2016 PL dba lovepat press

POEMS FROM THE FRONT PORCH

Front porch, Couchwood; swing behind the column

SLOWLY, THE CHANGE
Purple,
pink and maroon
foliage, suffused by green,
belie oranges and browns in
the flag
[9. 29. '16]

IT'S NO USE, GREYE
Cat looks
into the house,
'meows' to be let in.
But the owner--me--sits outside,
says, "Wait!"
[9. 29. '16]

FUTURE NEIGHBORHOOD
Before
winter sets in,
crews working overtime
to get the new subdivision
finished.
[9. 23. '16]

A BREATHER
Taking
a break from church,
awaiting the 'hundred
percent chance of rain' on the front
porch swing.
[9. 18. '16]

JEWELS
Raindrops
hang and sparkle
on the vintage corn plant
after last evening's surprising
shower.
[9. 14. '16]

A young Billy on the front porch at Couchwood

Marching through March: poems

WARY

Checking

each other out:

the old cat from inside,

the young one from the windowsill--

both mute.

THE PEN CLUB PREZ

He wrote

his way through law

school with purple ink found

for a buck a bottle. He still

has some.

(from a Jay Grelan column, 3/8/2011)

 

 

Though I

knew better, I

mixed undies with blue jeans.

My washday song now goes, "How gray

thou art."



 



Houses
on two lakes. Still,
he didn't like fishing,
nor did he have any other
hobbies.
(from a teacher/preacher's featured obit, AD-G, 2005)

THIS COULD BE TODAY

Rival

candidates:how

much human dignity

is each willing to sacrifice

to win?

(P. Greenberg on '06 GOP (AR) primary)

Dithering during December: poems

ON EATING THE LAST OF AN OUTDATED BAG OF LETTUCE
I pick
through the pieces
like a robin in leaves,
eating the green bites, ignoring
the rest.
[2013]

Straight'ning
a four-inch pile
of tossed-aside papers,
I find a flash drive & a love
letter.
[2013]



FACEBOOK:
People you may know:
Pope Francis
[2015]

motorcyclist
his jowls whipping backwards
in the wind
[2015]

finding
a ring
I
didn't know
was missing
[2015]

pawning
car titles
to pay monthly bills
[2015, AD-G]

With Windows 10, I can't get a pic for this poetry blog. So..........

"Being a poet is one of the unhealthier jobs--no regular hours, so many temptations!" - Elizabeth Bishop, found in Book Lover's Calendar for 2015 for the weekend of October 10& 11.

.............. here are some lately-written shorties.

CINQUAINS

Then don't look!
Outside
their fence, they place--
by their full trash bin--more
and smaller bags. They can't see, but
I can!
~~

Mistaken Identity
Help! Help!
An owl swooped down
and snatched my lure; got snagged
on a fish hook. I called the Feds"
"Come quick!"
~~

Around the Homestead
Privet
branches brush crisp,
fallen maple leaves on
the barrow trip to the growing
brush pile.
~~

Union Trust Co., Little Rock
Sadly,
that old building--
its striking art-deco
style notwithstanding--torn down for
parking.
~~

The Visitor
A black
butterfly flies
the length of the front porch,
veers off and disappears. Oh! It
comes back.
~~

c PL, dba lovepat press, 2015

September Cinquains

brother Guy Couch's begonia

 

HIDDEN

The height

of deceit: a

perfect windfall pear, just

right for breakfast, yielded a mere

six bites.

 

FAUNA

Plumb-lined

in a row: CAT

crouching on the porch edge

eyeing the sitting SQUIRREL. Beyond,

a BIRD.

 

ANOTHER TIME, PERHAPS?

A black

butterfly flits

toward the bucket of pears

ready to be "worked up." I show,

it goes.

 

MID-SEPTEMBER, 2012

Bringing

the portable

heater inside to warm

the bathroom after a dip in

the temp.

 

BAROMETER

During

the night, my toes

ached. 'The weather's changing'

I thought. Sure enough, thunderstorms

forecast.

 

SUSTENANCE

Outside

the south window,

a juvenile, gray bird

feasts on a circlet of beauty-

berries.

 

c 2015 PL

POEMS WRITTEN DURING VARIOUS OCTOBERS

THERE GOES
A YELLOW LEAF
SAILING ACROSS THE PORCH
AND THROUGH THE RAILING DOWN TO THE
WOODPILE.
(Writers' Colony at Dairy Hollow, 2011)
~~
The rose
I almost tossed
during the summer heat
now full of buds that will shortly
bloom pink.
(Couchwood, 2012)
~~
BLISSFUL
AND QUIET, BUT
FOR A DISTANT TRAIN, A
REVVING MOTORCYCLE . . . AND, OH,
A BIRD.
(WCDH porch, 2011)
~~
Looking
up just in time
to watch a lone red leaf
drifting, adding to the autumn
carpet.
(WCDH, 2012)
~~
AGAIN,
BEFORE DAWN, THUGS
ARE BASHING MAILBOXES.
NO, THE NIGHT-SHIFT NEIGHBOR'S SPLITTING
SOME WOOD
(Arkadelphia, 2003)
~~
Should I
move to a chair
closer to the front door,
or be peppered by rain on the
porch swing?
(Couchwood, 2010)

PL- dba lovepat press

CINQUAINS IN SUMMER

OZARKS

 

 

MY, YOU'RE UP EARLY

Early-

morning lookout;

the mockingbird perches

on the apex of the roof. 'How's

the view?'

PL - 6/24/14

 

~~

 

I'LL TAKE ANY KIND

Two blooms--

such as they are--

on the old begonia.

Not the usual raceme, but

dime sized.  

PL - 6/24/14

~~ 

 

 PREPPING FOR GUESTS

Checking

every crevice,

every curve for pepper

seeds. (They do a number on her

stomach.)

PL - 6/27/14

~~

 

UNTENDED CORNER

Amidst

the green of vines,

privet--even a tree--

the crape myrtle blooms peek out from

it all.

PL - 6/29/14

~~

 

PARENTING AT ITS BEST

The 'chit'

of a redbird

on the ground. With his child

nearby, Daddy keeps a watch for

the cats.

PL - 6/30/14

~~

 

FROM J P MORGAN

Twenty-

four-year-old man

gets a retirement-plan

letter! I've heard of funny things,

but this?!?

PL - 7/1/14
~~
~~



POEMS WRITTEN during the month of JUNE in various years

Greye (left) and Boots, co-owners of Couchwood, PL

 

 



MYSTERY

On some
days, poems just
bubble up. Today, 4
flowed through my pencil before eight
a. m.
[PL, 6.28.'13, actual]
~~

T. S. DON- a found poem

Who'd have
ever thought a
tropical storm would be
a looked-forward-to event for
farmers?
[PL, 6.22. '12, AD-G, K. Heard/ R. Johnson]
~~

TO PUNJAB POLICE - a found poem

Edict:
Shrink your waistlines
to 38 inches
or below. Otherwise, you're off
the street.
[PL, 6. 19. '12, News]
~~

THE NEIGHBORHOOD
Oh, my!
The neighborhood's
gone down--dogs on two sides!
But, wait! There's a butterfly ... and
birdsong.
[PL, 6.19. '12, actual]
~~

I'M NOT MOVING

Gray cat
Boots merely lies
on the cool concrete porch,
yet the wrens seem agitated.
Too bad.
[PL, 6. 19. '12, actual]
~~
~~