Tag: nature

One of Many Things

I think what I adore about you most
is your compassion for creatures in need:
the softshell turtle caught in dirt you freed;
protecting the mother hens on the coast
of the pond from a rowdy drake engrossed
in his hormones; and when you took the lead
trapping and releasing to his green weeds
the little lizard found on our bedpost.

Spiders, moths, and even juvenile wasps,
you do what you can to bring them from harm.
Even when exhausted you don't exhaust
your kindness for helpless things. That's the charm
which draws us to your arms, especially
the one who needs you more than any: me.

Homesick

Autumn in Fort Wayne,
Indiana, solely known
From my love's tristesse:
The browning leaves he misses,
First snow, furrows in his brow.

I despise airplanes;
But if I had the money,
We'd fly back and forth
From the glades of Florida
To Indiana's corn fields.

Cutting Grass

I never minded 
Cutting grass (it's just a chore)
Until his outrage;
The next time I took notice,
Frantic grasshoppers cornered,

Butterflies driven
From screaming engines of blades,
Surviving despite
The razing of their green homes.
Before week's end they've grown back.

And from the neighbors'
The crimson cardinal and
His tawny feathered 
Mate return to our trees with
The red-headed woodpecker.