Posted on:Free form poetry Poetry SPOKEN WORD writing

The Dark Sky Poetry Project

Our labor of love- a video poetry event we call, The Dark Sky Poetry Project.

We made this video to offer a way for local poets to be a part of a weeklong celebration of dark sky events at the Northport Arts Association, in Northport , Michigan that included a fantastic gallery exhibit (with social distancing and masks in place!) There was a night of music about the stars, a lecture by Mary Stuart Adams and a dark sky photography workshop given by nature photographer, Sheen Watkins at the tiny Woolsey Airfield here at the top of the Leelanau Peninsula in Michigan. It’s been a magical week as our night sky not only dazzled us with clear skies and a billion stars, the Aurora Borealis decided to show her face and the Neowise comet did a photobomb.

Here’s Sheen’s luckiest photo ever from Cathead Bay on Lake Michigan from June 13, 2020. 109323459_10217789036012763_8275601304294396698_o

www.sheenwatkins.com

 

Northport Arts Association:   NAA

Posted on:Free form poetry Poetry writing

Poetry Day: Monarch

Monarch

Dirty hands in the garden

Flowers in their places- just so.

Ready now for Monarchs 

as they make their way north from Mexico.

Time and money and work

to get it right and make it welcoming

for these elusive visitors.

A few weeks on-

flowering nicely

alone.

Wandering back to the barn

along the edge of the woods

where wild things grow

stood dozens of milkweed plants

sharing their heady fragrance

with the bees and monarchs 

who were busy with their work.

Strange, just then, to think of me at 25. 

Remembering the time and money and work

to make myself a garden

for a monarch 

and in the end of that-

it wasn’t about the shine and the slope,

the curves and the tightness

the tone or the petal covering-

The monarch settled happily

On a wild familiar flower

We could learn much from

accepting what the monarch wants.

PicsArt_07-14-12.38.57

 

 

Posted on:Free form poetry Poetry writing

Poetry Day: The Best Perfume

The Best Perfume

If they could bottle

the perfect perfume

of the yard

on this July night-

it would be the only thing I’d wear.

Honeysuckle and milkweed chase

nicotiana

as they run on the air

to greet me.

And as I round the corner

petunias, lavender and geranium

rise to dance with fragrant pine.

Parisian perfumers come close

in their white laboratories.

But they miss the notes of ozone

heralding a sun shower approaching

and the whiff of fresh cut grass

arriving from the neighbor’s lawn.

And the subtle musk of wildlife that

crossed in early morning as they stole

the bright flower heads for breakfast.

A thousand unseen elements

create this custom blend-

the pure essence of summer.

Posted on:Free form poetry NaPoWriMo2020 Poetry writing

NaPowriMo2020 Poem #22: Looking For Angels

Looking For Angels

 

I

am always

looking for angels

eye to eye

the familiar stranger passes

and dips his chin

to say-

yes

it’s me-

roadway leaves

whirl up before the car

turned from passing wings

reminder

we are safe today

Following the ambulance

in the predawn light

everywhere-

they are everywhere

if you’re looking for angels

Holder of the Earth
mimi2003

 

 

Posted on:Free form poetry NaPoWriMo2020 Poetry writing

NaPoWriMo2020 Poem #19- Dragon

 

DRAGON

Lost in your head again

weaving your own heroes tale

waiting for the winner’s laurel

there is no race here

no challenge to win

this is life

we all work

we all create

and there are no banquets

and acceptance speeches

for making a home

or feeding your family

this is life

the award

is the company you keep

people who mirror back

what you send their way

light or dark

we chose

every day

to do it the

easy way

or the hard way

and we find

at the end of our journey-

the dragon we slew

to win the final crown

was the dragon in the mirror

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Posted on:Free form poetry NaPoWriMo2020 Poetry writing

NaPoWriMo2020 Poem #15- Adrenaline Drain

Adrenaline Drain

it can’t tell the difference, you know

that part of your brain

that sends the alert out

to fight or fly

so, every single day

when you wake up

and fill your head

with news that terrifies you

you may as well have

left the adrenaline faucet

on full blast

and what happens

when you shut off

that supercharged jet fuel

coursing through your body

and dare to relax for a minute?

that’s right-

you sleep like the dead

and wake up tired.

cuz it doesn’t

know the difference between

immediate threat

and the 9,000th message

with the same information-

of course you’re tired

take a nap

and turn the damn tv off

Posted on:Free form poetry NaPoWriMo2020 Poetry writing

NaPoWriMo2020 Poem #14- My Story

 

My Story

…and when you tell my story-

the one where you cast me as the villain-

do you leave out the parts that don’t fit your script?

do you tell them of love and laughing

do you say how large a piece of heart we shared?

do you mention midnight phone calls

and the shoulder that was yours for the asking?

or will that ruin your play-

if they know you loved me as fiercely as I loved you?

you wanted to write a thriller

but wrote a tragedy instead

do they know?

 

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