In Praise of Weeds

hesperus in Andover, MA 5-12-12

Tenacious things,

Opportunist,

Prolific reproducers,

Invades of lawns,

Rejuvenators of abandoned fields,

Seed producing,

Life giving,

Food for birds,

Decorators of highway edges,

Wildflowers in meadows,

Dandelion sunbursts in a field of green;

Weeds can be your enemy or…

Your friend.

~kathie adams brown (May 21, 2013)

That's When I Need Beauty

When there is darkness all around me—

that’s when I need light.

When there is ugliness displayed—

that’s when I need beauty.

When the man-made world overwhelms—

that’s when I seek out Nature

to soothe and restore me,

to refresh my spirit,

to remind me that all is not lost,

that there will always be light, beauty, and hope.

~kathie adams brown (May 10, 2013)

Sunday Morning Litany in the Desert in Spring

Palo Verde Blossoms

Sunshine

Coffee on the patio

Mesquite trees in flower

Pollen everywhere

Goldfinches flittering

Roses in bloom,

Sunshine in the morning,

Shade in the afternoon.

Sunshine

Potted geranium by my chair

Lizards tumble in the yard

White-winged doves serenade

Hummingbirds hovering,

Palo Verde trees in bloom,
Insects a-buzzing,

Sunshine in the morning,

Shade in the afternoon.

Sunshine

Cactus wrens are calling,

Yellow blossoms on prickly pear,

A coronet of creamy blossom

Atop towering saguaros

Sky as blue as a lizard’s belly,

Ocatillos are in bloom,

Sunshine in the morning,

Shade in the afternoon,

It's springtime in the desert,

It's springtime in the desert,

It's Spring!

~Kathie Adams Brown (April 29, 2013)

NaPoWriMo 2013/30 Poems in 30 Days

A Spring Morning in Tucson

Today

the still, gray air

nestles in around me

comforting me with its gentleness

in the backyard birds feed peacefully beneath

blooming roses.

~Kathie Adams Brown (April 12, 2013)

NaPoWriMo 2013/30 Poems in 30 Days

I've Been Waiting for the Crocuses

I've been waiting for the crocuses

to poke their tender shoots

through frozen earth mud

and point the way skyward

until the warm kiss of spring

causes them to swell

and burst forth in bloom

with petal colors like confetti

strewn across the lawn.

~Kathie Adams Brown (3-7-11)

Crocuses in my backyard 3-18-11

In the Backyard the Rain

In the backyard the rain
pounding forms a small pond
up against the iceberg
formed by the last snow storms,
dirty snow piled high
pushed away so one can enter
this backyard landscape, a miniature version
of this wide snowy world
in transition.
Soon the crocus will bloom in the front yard.
Soon, soon.

~ Kathie Adams Brown (February 25, 2011)

September Pond

The silence of a September pond
rippling like molten lead,
cool as an autumn breeze,
embraced by trees,
velvety evergreens,
yellow-coined birches, alder, oak,
red-spangled maples,
reflected in still waters
where
a lone water lily
a white flame on a wet lily-pad floor
opens to the rain,
silver droplets falling to its center,
opening its heart,
opening my heart
to receive this autumn day,
this stormy silence.

~Kathiesbirds (September 28, 2010 Babcock Pond, Colchester, CT)

Climbing Aster

The dawn rose
-an aster
with lavender sunrays
surrounding her
golden face.

~Kathiesbirds (July 2, 2008)

This poem was inspired by a photo of a Climbing Astor seen at Virtua Gallery by photographer Klaus Web.

Best Dressed Flowers In the Garden

The clematis is a bridal gown,

the spiderwort a hat,

the creeping thyme a chorus

asking of the weed, "what's that?"

~Kathiesbirds (6-20-08)

Once again I was inspired by someone else's blogpost. I wrote this one today after visiting Nature Girl's Blog. To see the photos that inspired this poem, click here.