A bird of darkness
Has come to rest
Within my chest
He perches on my heart
Pinching me with talons sharp
And conquering
With one black feathered flag
I saw him sailing in 
And circling for
Landing
I tried to wave him off
I made all sorts of flapping
Clapping
Shooing
Shouting
Crazy like a scarecrow
Moves
To chase this dour fellow
From my day
But he is resolute
And clings to me
For morbid company
And rudely
Overstays   

Sara Mathews   2015/ David Ladmore (used with permission)

http://davidladmore.com/oils_crows_and_cats_page.html
 

The sun is the butter

The milk is the sky

And I am the fed

The wind is protector

The rain clears the chatter 

And I am the daughter

A breath is a fortune

A word is a motto

And I am the scribe

And the lung

And the wish

Each morning is gifted

Each evening is prayed to

And I am the sated

The blessed and 

The grateful

Amen

Sara Mathews     January 2021

Photo by Ingrid Mathews

 

My thoughts scroll by
I’m lucky to catch one
Cocky little birds
Flitting and chattering on
Quite happy to elude me
Chipping and teasing
Surfing the day
And hobo cloud
And southbound wind
Steal my words 
Whistling 
Laughing  
Seizing the morning
And wondering at me
Dull as an anchor 
Grounded as clay

Sara Mathews     January 2021

Duy Huynh https://www.duyhuynh.com/

 

All long night 
The winds blew change
Without a pause
Or catch-a-breath
They blew as though they
Needed to
To sort
And clear and
Rearrange
They tugged the dark
And folded it
They wracked the branch
And swept the moon
They buffeted against my sleep
And pushed the limits
Of their might
I thought I’d wake to find a calm
Or peaceful scene made
Resolute
But on they carry
On and on

 Sara Mathews     January 2021
Charles E Burchfield ~ December Storm

Goodnight

Goodnight
We’ll hush the light
And as we sleep 
The dark retreats
May I carry safely through
The valuables entrusted me
A whispered breath to
Search inside
A little voice resounding wise
A box of sadness safely held
And ribboned with a tender twine
A heart of good and earnest hope  
A heart of losses 
Never lost
A treasure chest of empty maps
To chart them at my own behest 
A spade to delve
A star to wear
The armor for a warrior

Sara Mathews     January 2021

Alphonse Maria Mucha ~ Woman in the wilderness ~ 1923

Such a hopeful day

While I slept long

The blue seeped in

To every corner

Of the sky

The puffs of white

Arranged just so

And a golden orb

That hung just right

To glow upon each

Upturned soul

And the earth sang out

In choruses

Of bird and tree 

And we

Rejoicing 

Rejoicing

Sara Mathews     January 2021

Edvard Munch ~ The Sun ~ 1909

 

Take in the night

Tuck it under your wing

Stir the embers

Of those you miss

As the stars prick your memories

And the moon swells

Brimming like an uncaught tear

Up and over

Full of all your longing

It sails clear the web of cloud

The tangled tree

And tops the sky 

Take the light

Hold it hot in your palm

 It promises something

Sara Mathews     December 2020

Artwork by Duy Huynh (used with permission)

https://www.duyhuynh.com/