Written for Monday night’s haibun at dVerse.
Finding Poetry
Regarding poetry writing, I am a late bloomer. Fiction ruled my heart and mind although I loved words and rhythm and sound. Poetry was like a mystical voice, too enigmatic to undertake until I found poetry by Neruda, Mary Oliver, and Jane Kenyon, such different voices whispering to me, yet each echoing a love of words. Beautiful, hungry words.
Today, it’s only Mary Oliver whose poems I read over and over, sharing her affinity for nature, wishing I could weave the webs she does with philosophy so subtly strewn in natural history so the “aha” is never far away. Perhaps it is easier if you have farmland and a pond where egrets and heron stand one-legged or hear the croak of night’s bullfrogs or the screech of the pale-faced owl, where the fog hovers until burned away by the rising sun, and not the constant thrum of traffic on a beltway of congestion and dissonance.
Robins evening choir.
Yellow daffodils budding
despite new spring snow.
Despite tomorrow being the first day of Spring we are going to have winter weather. Like 2017, February was spring and March is winter.
end 3/19/2018
Sascha Darlington
Gorgeous haiku! Mary Oliver is a great poet! It doesn’t matter ehen. Just that you do. And you write so beautifully.
Thank you. And thank you for this prompt. It was not only an interesting investigation for me remembering how I came to write poetry, but I have loved reading every else’s entry. We all come to it from such different places.
Gorgeous haiku! Mary Oliver is a great poet! It doesn’t matter ehen. Just that you do. And you write so beautifully. Give Scout a head scratch for me!
I agree with you about Mary Oliver. She is worth reading over and over.
So true. And I always find something new when I reread.
It doesn’t matter if you’re a late bloomer, Sascha, as long as you bloom – which you do! Mary Oliver is a wonderful poet to live with – and I love your haiku!
Delightful Sascha, I like the reasons why you write.
I like Mary Oliver too! Thanks for sharing…better late than never!
I shall go to the back of the class—I have never even heard of Mary Oliver! I like your words though, and I agree with your reasoning, it’s much easier to have a serene outlook on the world when you are not choking on traffic fumes.
I think with your love of nature, Jane, you would very much appreciate Mary Oliver.
Thanks for reading!
I’ll look her up 🙂
Your haiku is a perfect description of us… Flowers blooming through the snow!!
Mary Oliver is a fine poet.
dwight
Thank you! 🙂
I share your love of Mary Oliver, and I’ve enjoyed hearing about your poetic journey. The haiku is timely and appropriate. On this, the first day of Spring, we have a winter weather advisory and prediction of snow!
Thank you, Beverly. You must live near me as we had the same thing. Well, hopefully spring will soon be here…really. 🙂
“Perhaps it is easier if you have farmland and a pond where egrets and heron stand one-legged or hear the croak of night’s bullfrogs or the screech of the pale-faced owl, where the fog hovers until burned away by the rising sun, and not the constant thrum of traffic on a beltway of congestion and dissonance.”
You painted such a vivid picture in my mind of egrets and herons and bullfrogs in these lines – you have a beautiful way with words!
Thank you so much, Jo! 🙂
Oh I think we all learn from writing and reading… being a late bloomer is perfect here, you are among friends who are just the same…
I’ve always felt the sense of community. 🙂
You’re so right in that poetry is a mystical voice. I’ll have to look up Mary Oliver. (That’s the student in me coming out to take notes
😊)
I think we all like to find new poets to love. 🙂
Of course egrets and ponds make for an inspiring atmosphere. Love your haiku, an pd share your love of Mary Oliver.
Thank you so much! 🙂
Amazing second stanza – it just got stronger and what an ending! Mary Oliver is a favorite of mine as well.
Thank you so much. I think Mary Oliver has the ability to touch so many people so (seemingly) effortlessly. 🙂
I can hear the birds chirping.
Thank you! 🙂