The poetry prompt for the fourth week in April was: the waking Earth.
Robins Sing
by Peter Donndelinger
A rising sun peeks over the
horizon spreading its blanket
of rays over a sleeping land.
Robins sing in the key of dawn.
Again the waking Earth reaches
out to gift us that which cannot
be owned: Soil, Water, Air, Sky.
Awake and Fly!
by Marian Heinemann
Robin with your bright orange chest
Singing your Spring song
Flying through a sky of blue
Rabbit with your soft brown coat
Darting past my window
Hopping in and out of view
Duck gliding on the water
Drifting on my pond
Moving without a ripple
Let me join you
In your freedom
Let me touch your wings and fly!
Let me play and run beside you
Lead me to the open sky!
For people now must live in cages
Until the world is healed and strong
Within our hearts, keep hope burning
For to each other we belong.
The poetry prompt for the third week in April was: you are so kind.
One Spring Day
Don’t change the way you are.
So kind, with your gentle breeze
ushering in the warmth.
So sweet, as the blossom
dancing with a bumble bee.
So soothing, like a cooling rain
on stifling humid days.
So fleeting, as that feathery cloud
painted by setting sun.
So mysterious, like the stars at night
just before the dawn.
No. Don’t change a thing.
I want all days to be like this.
This day in which you are so kind.
Peter Donndelinger
You are so kind April 22, 2021 Earth Day
by Kristine Lendved
Be kind, they say.
Kind of what?
Kind of callow?
Kind of a bitch?
Kind of a stranger?
The kindness of strangers?
Kind. Our kind.
That which is like. Us.
But, I am tired of argument and strife.
I am grateful for the full sun on my face
which feels like a kindness.
The way my easy chair accepts my being
when my work day is done. And I sigh.
I love the catkins of spring trees, the red
maple buds, the ephemerals that ghost the ground.
“You are so kind” I say to Earth on this day. “Kind
to keep renewing, blooming, to keep turning our seasons through the stars. Our Starship Earth.
That we should work to be
kinder to.
Amen.
The poetry prompt for the second week in April was…continuing…
Here are the poems that were submitted.
A Continuing Haiku
I’m continuing
to try to accept what’s gone
and question what’s next.
Continuing to
try to see what is the same
in a world much changed.
I’m continuing
to learn patience, gratitude,
and how to bake bread.
Jeanine Evenson
Northwoods Compass
by Peter Donndelinger
Continuing forward. Walk where
green grass grows and
tall pines sway
in the gentle
breeze.
Stand beside rippled waters,
where the loon swims in
silent solitude of
dusk.
Gaze, as the sunset’s painted hues
of coral, crimson, and violet,
beckons one to marvel
at all that has been
gifted.
Trust the night sky, filled
with endless stars,
to be your
guide.
Continuing…
On this grey day
in this the 13th month of our
pandemic confinement…
continuing seems an act of faith.
Maybe the best we can do.
Better days will come.
Are coming.
Spring is flaunting promises.
I once read somewhere that
in Winter, Spring is a myth.
We must continue to believe.
Continuing…will find us there.
Kristine Lendved
The poetry prompt for the first week in April (with bonus days April 1-3) which was, coincidentally, National Library Week was: The library, because…
Here are the poems that were submitted!
Unstuck
by Jeanine Evenson
I’m stuck.
First a broken world, now a fractured body.
Going nowhere fast.
So I send C (on his bike!) to the library, because
they have new books for me!
I’m going on a trip.
Not hitting the road so I’ll hit the pages.
In the past few months I’ve piloted a small boat across America
visited Cold Mountain and climbed peaks in Alaska
trained hawks in England
dogsledded in Norway
explored arctic Canada and almost made it to Antarctica
not to mention I summited Annapurna with the first team to achieve it
(almost died on the way down).
I needed to warm up so took a three month birding trip
from Texas to Ontario
followed by a journey to the desert Southwest.
Whew!
With all this going on, how do I ever find time to read?
Unstuck.
Untitled
by Kasse Tomasula
The library,
because of the log building that is home to many books
because of the large wood table that invites visitors to sit and read the news
because the children’s nook nurtures a lifetime love for reading
because the librarians advise and direct us to the right shelf.
Untitled
by David Tomasula
The library, because books are dear we drink lots of beer so let’s give a cheer.
The Library, because …
by Peter Donndelinger
Held within its shelves
are words which feed the spirit
of community.
Haven
by Marian Heinemann
Nestled among the pines and Aspen
Not far from river, stream, and shore
Sits a lodge built for learning
Beckoning all – “Walk through my door”
Inside its walls treasures wait
On shelves where books abound
Inviting you to turn each page
A place for reading and silent sound
This is where you can find me
On rainy or a sunny day
My refuge from a world of chaos
The Library.
The Library, Because...
by Kristine Lendved
The library, because, even when the doors were closed the portal was open. Access to other places, times, dimensions. To sounds, to flavors, to philosophies. To all that we have been. Are. Can be. The library, because, whatever you need to know is there. Or. They’ll know where to find it.
