Nature & Environmentalism

Feb 2019

MicMag

Midst the mountains, sitting so high
Gazing down at a turquoise sea
Nature recites love songs to me
As I release contented sighs
Crickets chirp, sparrows sing, my spirits rise
This is a world to be relished and prized
Midst the mountains

Imagine Earth in perfect harmony
Forgetting war, strife, victim's tortured cries
Escaping all life's pain and lies
Resting here where my heart is free
Midst the mountains

Trying out more poetic forms. This one is a Rondine.
https://www.writersdigest.com/whats-new/rondine-poetic-form

...
Well on closer review, I didn't actually follow the form correctly. But I still like this one so I'll just leave it as is.

#mountains #inspired #content #escape #rondine #ormaybenot

Nov 2018

MicMag

A Haiku, Gust For You

Wind whispers to me
"I bring cold, aromas, leaves"
I know life's a breeze

PAD Poem-A-Day Challenge November 2018

Prompt:
"a private poem"
http://www.writersdigest.com/whats-new/2018-november-pad-chapbook-challenge-day-5

#pad #challenge #wind #gust #breeze #private #message

Nov 2018

MicMag

Nightfall

seated
on a bright yellow stone slab bench
beside a cobblestone path
diving steeply into dark forest

my page illuminated
by the last trace of filtered sunlight
this overcast Friday eve

mountains peeking through low clouds
marking dark silhouettes
against a blue-gray southeast sky
hints of pink paint the western clouds
softly bidding us goodnight

scattered shouts
and musical notes
waft up from the town's bars below
dancing through the trees
flowing to the rhythmic folklore
of the local vallenato band

night closes in
darker each minute
the thin yellow crescent overhead
seizes its moment
shining brighter and louder
through the wispy clouds

as mountains emerge at last from fog
they dissolve just as quickly
into the black sky

all vibrant hues melt away
the bench transforms
dark yellow becomes gray
beneath my weight

one last vestige of color lingers on
the dull red burning on the horizon
sparks an inner fire of gratitude
for every second of light
every second of life

my page descends into darkness
written thoughts plunge back
into the unexpressed depths of the mind

Night falls.

PAD Poem-A-Day Challenge November 2018.

Nov 2 Prompt:
"write a darkest hour poem"

http://www.writersdigest.com/whats-new/2018-november-pad-chapbook-challenge-day-2

This is a reworked old poem originally written at dusk in a beautiful mountain setting in Colombia.

#pad #challenge #night #dusk #dark #colors #fade #mountains #moon #writing

Aug 2018

MicMag

Earth's Cry

Suffocated by
Our pollution and greed
Our planet cries out
Please, people, take heed!
It's not too late!
There's still hope, indeed!
But please, act quickly
Here's what we need.

Engage (not judge) friends
With informative conversation

Secondly, go vote
For smart regulation

Next, please encourage
Responsible personal choice

And finally, take time
Stop and listen to earth's voice

#earth #pollution #greed #destruction #apathy #hope #initiative #vote #speak #listen

Aug 2018

MicMag

Lunar Lies

The moon's not a crescent
It doesn't glow
It doesn't shine
It doesn't hang in the air
It doesn't show your love
Or mine

Blood moons? Not ******
Blue moons? Not blue
Super moons? Not so super
New moons? Anything but new

Superstitious? Full moons
Don't fill the earth with fright
Don't induce labor
Nor raise werewolves
In the night

No man in the moon
Hate to break it to you
Moon's mysterious myths
Mere legends
All untrue

These unscientific lyrics
Carelessly thrown around
What a load of crock!

The moon is nothing more
Than a cold empty sphere
A pale lifeless rock

And this just in
From all the moonlight lovers:
So is my soul, what a shock!

#moon #lunar #myths #idioms #poetry #lifeless #rock

Aug 2018

MicMag

Trashed

World lays in ruin
Our enduring monument
Plastic-covered shores

our plastic will outlive us all

#haiku #trash #plastic #reduce #reuse #recycle #please

Aug 2018

MicMag

Volcano

.
              (  (  growing gray cloud of smoke and ash  ) )
              (  (  expanding mass of poisonous gas  ) )
                         (  ( billowing upwards into the air ) )           a
                            (  (    dark    omen    of    )  )                    s
                                 (  (      despair      )   )                         h
      (    \           //    )
                                       (   \        //   )                                 g
                                           (  \     //  )                                     e
                                              \\\  /////                                        n
                                                \\\/////                                           t
                                         the                                                     l
                                    peak's        top                                    y
exploding     right off
                       glacial snows melting down                       f
                     lava flows heading for the town                     a
                   terror! destruction! fright erupting out                   l
               extinct beast awakens, roaring primal shout                  l
           mountain trembling, earth shaking, people quaking           s
       in fear and wonder, transfixed by summit torn asunder
fire and fury blend with the sky as we flee and ponder why
we await this rage from the earth but the beauty makes it worth
all the deadly risks we know we face in living at this volcano's base

I recently visited some stunning towns
sitting at the base of active volcanoes.

I was left contemplating this tension
between the beauty and potential carnage.

(This one doesn't seem to look quite right on a phone.
Try it with a rotated screen.)

#volcano #fire #fury #ash #lava #terror #danger #beauty

Aug 2018

MicMag

Secret Garden

Midst high rolling hills
Blanketed with farms
Sits an oasis nestled
In the mountain's arms

A secret garden there
Quietly awaits us all
Listen closely now
Hear its whispered call

This serene paradise
Offers nature's finest shows
Volcano looming cross the plains
Perfect cone and shining snows

Sitting in the shadow
Of the sometimes rumbling beast
The tranquil refuge whispers softly
Come and rest in peace

Inspired by a beautiful refuge looking out
to one of the most picture-perfect mountains I've ever laid eyes on.

I loved reflecting on the irony of this idyllic setting
forged by crashing tectonic plates and destructive eruptions.

#oasis #panorama #volcano #mountains #secret #garden #refuge #peace

Aug 2018

MicMag

Downpour

Lost souls in the desert
In parched lands so dry
Raise hands in delight
As heavens open wide
Rain comes crashing down
Pouring from a heavy sky
Drenching the world
In echoing mournful cries
Of ocean's lament:

You pollute me

But why?

Do I not
Please your eyes?
Do I not also
Nurture
Provide?

I teem with life
Of infinite worth
I team with the wind
Sustain the earth

Yet you trash me
Without second thought
With countless byproducts
Of industrial rot
You don't relish my beauty
You don't savor my taste
You don't bask in my fragrance
No, you send me your waste

And still I give

As long as you live
I'll love you the same
I'll carry your boats
I'll feed you my fish
I'll send you the rain

So when the skies darken
Precipitation pours forth
Let it remind
Of how much you use me
Oh, please don't abuse me
No, please be kind
And treasure my worth

The rain today
brings the ocean
and life
and musings
and guilt
and call to action

#rain #ocean #pollution #lament #worth

Aug 2018

MicMag

Last Light

"Pretty boring sunset"
"Those colors aren't so bright"
"Not gonna waste my time with this"
"Not much to see tonight"

And as the crowds drifted off
Expressing their dismay
I sat and watched the last light fade
Perfect ending to my day

Not a scene you'd likely see
In any picture frame
Nor find for sale on postcards
Nor bring an artist fame

But as I stared in silence
Twilight rolled across the sky
Revelation rolled right through my mind
How miniature am I

Though others turned their gaze away
When the sky refused to preen
Twas among the most magnificent
My eyes had ever seen

#sunset #sky #colors #plain #boring #illuminating #revelation #magnificent

Aug 2018

MicMag

Unchanging Sky

Looking round, the world's changing too fast,
But there's something reassuring about the night sky.
Same moon, same planets, all the same old stars
Just as I saw with my eight year old eyes.

How far away is that one twinkling at me?
How long ago did it send its light this way?
Has the universe changed or has it stayed the same?
Maybe some planet back then was just like Earth today.

Don't look down, you won't recognize the world:
Center of aimless progress and innovation's mindless hub.
Instead, turn your gaze and your thoughts to the infinite.
When you feel lost, just look up.

Often I wonder,
Is it just me?
Or is gazing at stars
A glimpse of eternity?

#stargazing #nightsky #change #lost #infinite

— The End —