This day
is tie-dyed velvet:
Sequined blue blinks below,
milk swirled turquoise above,
Bald Eagle arcs over
undulating sunburnt pink hills,
Red-tailed Hawk swoops above
evergreen shadows that
shimmy under shining sun.
poem- serendipity September 1, 2013
The scenic route was lovely
and when I attempted to return to the highway
I took a wrong turn and found myself
above it all.
Beautiful blue sky day
The lake vividly stretching before me.
I savour the view as a serendipitous
opportunity to slow down
and look around.
No hurry.
Look.
.
.
Kalamalka Lake. Taken with my iPhone.
Through the grass you can see the highway I was supposed to have been on.
Instead, I ended up on a cul de sac of nice homes.
Okanagan Mountain Fire evacuation, August 2003 August 9, 2011
This was my second entry on the theme of fire for the Burnaby Writers Society poetry contest. One more month until winners are announced. I played around with stanza parallelism here, sometimes using strict rhyme, sometimes consonance. I had never seen this done before, so I was impressed with how well it worked.
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Okanagan Mountain Fire evacuation, August 2003
.
Fears.
A crimson hill glows above.
High from here, grey clouded skies
shower us in ghosts of pine needles
that dissolve at my touch
into powdered ashes,
while I load the van with memories.
.
Tears
Glisten, fill, flow out of,
My father’s grave, clouded eyes.
Cowering and aghast in pain, he huddles
and revolves as he’s nudged,
disempowered, ashen.
While I lead the man, his tremors ease.
.
.
This poem was linked to the Poetry Potluck on the theme of history and events. If you are visiting from the potluck, please include a direct link to your poem in a comment below. Thanks! It makes it easier for all participants that way.
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Shawn L. Bird 