Guest Poet - Emma from the Goodreads Poetry Group

I was struck by the poem below as I read through the entries in the April poetry contest on GoodReads.com. It reminded me of summers more youthful and innocent.

Emma, the poet, agreed to let me share it. And so, The Meadow, a poem by Emma.

The Meadow

Running my hand along the waist high grass,
I watch a brown sparrow take flight,
Its wings spread so that it might soar.
My skin is warm from the sunlight,
And I let it's warm fingers caress my face.

I breathe in the beauty.  For,
Wildflowers also cover the meadow,
Their vibrant colors painting,
vivid pictures as they let the wind blow,
Their soft and delicate heads.

A large oak stands in the center of this glory.
Its great branches stretch to the sky,
Holding it, the bright blue, in its soft leafy palms,
They reach like arms lifted up high,
Trying to capture the sunlight and hold it tight

My second book of poetry is available in Kindle version (on Amazon) and in paperback everywhere (you may have to order it at brick and mortar shops). This one is just poems and continues the contemplative, observational, calming, style of Conditions.

Also available in other formats on Smashwords.com (10/10/13).

Of course you can preview on Amazon, but here are a couple further into the book:

Little Bird

Little bird, where do you go

When the rain beats down

And the wind does howl and blow?

 

It can’t be far; you’re always out

As soon as the sun

Returns and the kids begin to shout.

 

Your tiny voice is so very loud;

When you leave there’s silence.

So I’m happy to see a break in cloud,

 

Knowing you’ll soon be back!

Passed By

It’s coming!

Wind picking up, gusting, cool.

Clouds piling up, darkening.

The birds excited, racing about.

Thunder rumbling, deep and throaty,

Still distant.

It’s coming!

The wind swirls; you almost

Taste the rain coming.

The trees bend and sway

As the thunder comes closer

And the birds disappear.

It’s coming!

A patch of blue?

The clouds streaming by, breaking up

Thunder less distinct

Wind suddenly weaker

Where’d it go?

Passed us by.

The Bog

 Limpid pools of dark oily water

Call with enchantment strong

As magic can be.

Frogs skitter at the edges

Disturbed by boys’ silent noisy progress.

Muck sucks joyously

At sneakers filling them

With sulfurous black goo.

Spiders hang dangerously close

To the surface, barely visible

In the mystic gloom.

Treasures lurk just below the surface –

Beer cans, half their labels dissolved,

Husks of bottle rockets, and even,

To the lucky, a mud-sodden baseball.

Mom won’t like the treasures

Or the pieces of bog

Tenaciously carried home.

But nothing she says can stay the lure

Of the dim, smelly, bog.

Publication

This morning I published my first ebook, a collection of poems titled Conditions, illustrated with photos taken by my friend Karen O'Malia. I have been working on the collection for about 5 months. But the excitement I felt this morning upon publication was out of all proportion to my expectations.

I have no illusions of the small electronic tome being a million-seller. In fact, at this point, I don't care if I sell any. The journey to create it and format it and actually push the button and see it available for purchase was so enjoyable and the rush of seeing it as an actual publication so large, the rest is gravy.

It was wonderful to collaborate with Karen, with whom I have been friends for well over half my life. It was also fun to get feedback from people I was both close with and others who were just casual acquaintances but who had some experience with publishing or editing or writing.

While in the formatting and pre-publishing phases I continued to work on more poems and am about a third of the way toward another volume. Generally, I think, they are getting better. But the most fun is writing them and talking about them and showing them and getting feedback.

I certainly hope I sell a few copies. I know I'll write more.