"loosestrife" poems
*First light in the Hudson Valley
Arbor Day of April, 1970.*
Adrenaline coursed through our young
bodies, our hearts on fire with purpose.
As we rode our bikes, walked, or jogged miles
to our rural high school, red-winged blackbirds
called out from the misty swamps.
Beautiful but invading, acres of purple loosestrife
were rapidly taking over their wetland habitats.
Harbingers of the forests, blue jays issued
warning cries from deep in the woods,
where blights were killing our trees
with increasing frequency.
Three of us rode together, cycling in relative
silence, until we came to a meadow
selected for our early breakfast picnic.
We feasted on special fruits and cheeses,
hungrily stuffing in rare treats.
One friend began to send iridescent
soap bubbles into the chilly air.
Up they rose, up over the soft, puffy cloud
of her reddish curls, and into the dawning sun.
One bubble landed, unbroken, in the cold, dewy grass.
We stared at it, somehow understanding that here
was a delicate metaphor for our own fragile planet.
Approaching our school now, we breathed deeply the fragrance
of apple blossoms from commercial orchards all around us.
The spraying of pesticides had yet to be banned.
We were sleepy in our classes that morning;
most of our teachers understanding that we stood
now for something worthwhile, that we believed in,
and they smiled with kindness, some even with approval.
Our principal agreed to an awareness-raising slide show
designed for our fellow students, teachers and parents.
An intelligent man, he was admirably tolerant of the wave
of changes that our generation brought with us.
Smoke stacks, polluted water, and dying wildlife
flashed onto a screen in the darkened auditorium,
accompanied by the vivid symphonic power of
Stravinsky's 'Rite of Spring'- a score so revolutionary
that a riot broke out at its premier, in May of 1913.
We had no idea then how much worse things would become.
All these years later, we each do our part, blessing
the efforts of our children and their children,
hoping fervently that we are not too late.
Apr 22, 2016
Apr 22, 2016 at 2:37 PM UTC
Morning twilight beams up high
with package of promises
Breaks through black bergs of the sky without fatigue or recesses
Fresh and young green nature's life
an energetic living
Stands ***** purple loosestrife
menthol hypnotic giving
Sparkling dews of diamonds dance
on buds and flower-petals
Emerald spread in lawn o' romance
continuing chronicles
Birds in their own charming voice
Rings in my ears a tune
They do sing in a chirping noise
A dream not to leave soon
I breathe in deep the soft cool air,
That cools me in, as it goes.
Feel like fulfilled The Lord's Prayer
And what and what, who knows?
The grass filled with morning dews
Sparkling diamonds on ground,
Touches my feet livens me anew,
happiness and joy unbound.
Oh dear nature! Lovely and nice!
For all you render, there's no price.
Full of patterns of joy and glory.
Keep dawning in our lives, with your new story.
S. A. Marshal
30.12.2007
Aug 9, 2020
Aug 9, 2020 at 10:44 PM UTC
I felt
The angel of death had drawn neigh
Me untimely to hug
With COVID-19 positive tag
When a nurse and a police
Ventured to a quarantine me to drag.
Regretfully, the leniency "No!
The pandemic me will not mark
To me, there and then, became stark."
After I underwent
A gruesome psychological and
Languishing physical moment
Estranged from my dear children
And loving wife
Health professionals, backed by
A responsible government
And doting society,
Nursed me back to life.
"Cling to life
As blooms yellow loosestrife.
Our health is fine
Soon the same will be true with thine!"
Was what I read from the eyes of
The recuperated,
Allowed to leave the quarantine.
To me such clicks brought to light
On the channel's end
The presence of rays bright.
So as the recuperated
My advice
Is "Pay not unnecessary price!
True to
'Prevention is better than cure!'
In Covid-19' era
Reckless endangerment
Must not you lure!"
Jun 17, 2020
Jun 17, 2020 at 10:00 PM UTC