I spent part of the fall in Asheville, North Carolina painting, writing, spending time outdoors, and catching up with dear friends. Here are some of the pieces that have sprung from that trip.
Detail from Asheville, 60 x 84”
BRIEF PASSAGE
A single cormorant, feathers spread,
lazes on dark ripples.
A blaze of red and aqua sunlight
bolts through clouds on the horizon.
Halyards ring out evening in the marina
as sailboats sway in
wave-break at the jetty.
Geese fly currents above,
their shapely V dappling the light of moonrise.
I hear myself ask, no-one listening,
how many others have passed
time seated on this bench,
admiring the white windmill across the water,
blades blinking in dusk.
When my wings have flown me
through the portal that unlocks
death’s hidden prize,
will I become the breath of wind
or sister to a seagull perched on a pier?
Will I mingle with rainbow rays
to stir a lonely woman’s imagination
as sun sets on this bench, this bay, this beach,
thinking how fast light yields to dark.
This cove, so quiet on peaceful days,
turbulent when weather whips the shore,
ebbs and flows in rhythm with the moon
will not remember
I spent this solitary moment
holding close its aching beauty.
Asheville, 60 x 84”
Tree of Love, 84 x 60”