Too Short
smashing gold
of maples strikes
me from the blue
as I ride slowly
through woods
these dates in October
but the time is
too short
the time for paint
in the trees
is fleeting
a time I grab
with both hands
mostly a camera
possibly paintbrushes
quickly snapping
this glaring palette
before it flees
White Poinsettia
Aztecs surely knew
what glory they might
bring to hopeful eyes,
cultivating the brilliant
flor de Nochebuena,
delicate broad plant
mostly seen in season
of Christ’s Celebration,
wide green leaves with
snowy bracts fluttering,
gracefully curving to points,
so like wings of angels.
Angels’ Wings – Watercolor by Marilyn Peretti
Spring Blue
In the heart of the nation
no ocean
so I carve time to indulge
in the widest blue I know:
bluebells blooming
in the woods,
only for a short time
since branches above
show tiny yellow-green
petals-of-leaves
which in this overdue
warmth will enlarge quickly
masking sunlight feeding
this sea of blue,
stealing my ocean,
leaving me once again
on dry land.
May, 2018, Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL
Spring Blue is May prize winner at Wilda Morris Poetry Challenge; photograph by Marilyn Peretti.
perettipoems 