Now we are
at the turning moon
as summer slips a soft
retreat
and autumn breathes
a cidery cast
on gardens brilliant
last hurrah
farewell the pinks
and blushing vines
regale us
orange
rust and wine
the birds have feathers
lesser hued
than what this nip of frost
imbued

Sara Mathews     November 2024

Artwork ~ Pamela Tarbell

https://www.pamtarbell.com/

 

The geese resound

alas alack

their brilliant feathers shine

with all the golden

summer suns

they wind them up

and draw them aft

and sober lake

so mirror flat

reflects

their single minded track

and I below

with wistful eyes

beseech

don't go!

Sara Mathews   October 2024

 

An April snow
bestows
a needed refuge
a long awaited winter gift
albeit Spring
it's timing may be late
but breathe the meditation
and reset
I would that this could be
in every season
a road in summer
autumn too
unblemished
by the hurrying
and steady march of time
a ritual of obstacle
a hindrance to our feet
begets our mind's
rejuvenation

Sara Mathews  ~  April 2024

Hans Andersen Brendekilde

 

The stars brought me folly

tonight

so bright did they call

I couldn't resist

their enchanting display

so I wandered right through

to the very next day

connecting the dots

and accounting them all

my feet are as tired 

as dog stars

but my mind's eye 

is sparkled

my being is lightened

my essence enthralled

Sara Mathews     March 2024

Artwork ~ Duy Huynh 

https://www.duyhuynh.com/duy-huynh-artwork/

 

How sweet the eve

at the end of the day

when dusk falls from the sky

and the stars stitch neatly in

and a soft breeze nuzzles

the sleepy leaves

and the wild moon climbs

to his lofty crest

and the earth swells up

to the taste of dew

a cooling hand on her brow

and the din and the fiddle

of bird and bee

and their songs of light

have come to rest

how sweet the sound

of the midnight hour

when a hush drifts in

around

and night lies down

to her feathery bower

and the milky clouds

weave an inky sea

and now

how sweet the entirety

to be as one

but a pulse

and a breath

Sara Mathews    December 2023

Photograph by Ingrid Mathews

 

This morning brought

a lone goose cry
a wild and poignant
last goodbye
that echoed long behind
and rippled out
to all four corners
of my mind
and nestled down into
my thoughts
it seemed a mournful call
did I imagine him bereaved
I wondered at his solo trip
his absent Vee
could he be scout
or straggler
did he stay back
with hope
and did he pray
like me
for one more chance
for one more day

Sara Mathews   October 2023

Maruyama Okyo

 

This gentle rain
so quiet to the soul
the soft and steady drum
of letting go
each drop
a thought
each bounce upon the ground
implies resilience
each rivulet
a flow
of sweet release
and sky as silver as the sound
requires nothing
but to breathe the air
as sweet communion
one Robin sings
a single note
and takes the morning in
we praise the rain gods
he and I
and offer them
Amen

Sara Mathews    July 10 2023

Artwork ~ Lois Bryan