A Poem about Spring (from Within My Illusions)
The birds are chattering outside my window again.
A hundred thousand shades of green paint the canyon against a cloud-gray background.
Signs of life emerging by the minute And I had been burrowed so deep I didn’t see the red, red, redbuds budding. Now their branches are full flower.
Now mountain laurel’s luscious purple blossoms droop like bunches of grapes and smell as sweet.
Can I savor their fragrance before it becomes ordinary? Before youth gives way to maturity?
I am not surprised by the first butterfly that lands in my garden, but I had forgotten about the bluebonnets.
It was the daisy that reminded me: Beauty lies dormant beneath the surface of winter.
I often imagine that when my kids are grown and my nest is empty, I'd travel to visit all the people I know who live across the country and around the world. I am able to work from anywhere, and I love the idea of hosting poetry readings while getting to know various cities and towns.
This past week, I hosted a pop-up poetry reading and open mic in Ojai, California, while staying with a friend who lives there. It felt a little like pulling a thread from the future into the now. While I'm not in a season of life where I can spend long swaths of time away from home, it hadn't occurred to me before this trip that I didn't have to wait for the whole dream to materialize at once.
I wonder what you're dreaming for yourself? What lies dormant beneath the surface, and is there a small way that you can bring that idea into now?
With love,
Jennifer