Two of my poems, “East End Spring 2020“ and “Passing at a Distance,” are featured in the August 2020 issue of the South Florida Poetry Journal.
EAST END SPRING 2020
A cloud of rolling fog half covers Gardiner’s Island.
Salty spring air fills us with a tangy shiver,
like tartness in the sweet melt of dark chocolate
on the tongue. Along the beachfront,
Leyland cypress trees are silent. The morning world
is sleeping. Our island’s April winds
have vanished. A front yard of emerald ferns
unfurls dime-size spiral heads.
Burlap wrapped bushes, cocooned creatures,
will soon be free. The scrubby shoreline
forest chatters. Chicadees sing dee, chickadee,
new season! Woodpeckers ratchet repetitive
cacophony. The chorus of mating
spring peepers hidden in the wetlands, contributes
piercing screeches to the ensemble’s
swelling sound. Though the virus shadows
like a hungry ghost, nature’s noisy party
is an invitation. Small wonders catch us
by surprise. Our broken lives, nights
wishing for escape, have brought us
here at last, our fears unmasked,
to taste renewal. A cardinal flashes
across the road. We stop to see him land.
An influencer indeed,
he draws us in, chooses a cherry branch
thick with blooms. Perfect,
we think. Red bird, pink tree.
Click-through to read my other poem, listen to recordings of me reading them, and to check out the full issue of South Florida Poetry Journal.