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April: Mother Earth

4/19/2018

1 Comment

 
Picture
Wildcat Canyon
 The poets have been observing the elements this past Winter. First was water, overflowing; then fire, friend and foe; and  finally air, above it all. Now we come back to Earth. The water's deeps are mysterious, unknown; the sky's expanse beyond our ken; and fire fascinates us and repels us at the same time.  But the Earth is our home, where we live, work and play. Earth is the element we know intimately. So often we ignore her, engage in damaging practices, take her for granted. But at the end of the day, it is Earth to which we turn, where we seek solace and comfort. This Spring, go out and find her, hike in the hills, sit in the crook of a tree, relax in the yard and watch the squirrels play, smell the sweet blossoms in the garden, listen to the song of Spring and revel in Earth, our mother, our home. 
Song to Spring

​Hills are green
Mockingbirds sing
Crow on the wing
It is Spring.

Sky is blue
Clouds chased away
Sun here to stay
Spring anew.

Blue jays nest
And mourning dove
Hawk soars above
And I rest.

Spring is here
My heart is glad
No longer sad
You are near.

Hills are green
I am free
Free just to be
It is Spring.

-MW


As Mother's Day nears
I feel the tears, 
Wish you were here,
Mother, dear.

I think how just like the Earth
You gave us birth,
Well-nourished and fed
Our progress you led.

Raised us from seed,
Met our every need,
Helped us grow roots strong,
Taught us right from wrong.

Gave us a stem to stand tall
Get up from every fall,
Helped us grow leaves to feed
And helped us succeed.

Until now, fully grown.
We lead lives of our own,
Secure in the power
Of our mother's love flower.

​-MW

For the kids, in honor of Earth Day:

This is the Earth.
This is the seed lying in the Earth.
This is the sprout that grew from the seed that lay in the Earth. 
This is the stem that grew from the sprout that grew from the seed that lay in the Earth.
These are the leaves that grew on the stem that grew from the sprout that grew from the seed that lay in the Earth.
This is the water that goes into the leaf delivered by the stem that grew from the sprout that grew from the seed that lay in the Earth.
This is the leaf that makes the food using the water that goes into the leaf delivered by the stem that grew from the sprout that grew from the seed that lay in the Earth.
This is the bud that formed using the food made by the leaf that uses the water from the stem that grew from the sprout that grew from the seed that lay in the Earth.
This is the flower that blooms from the bud that formed using the food made by the leaf that used the water from the stem that grew from the sprout that grew from the seed that lay in the Earth.
This is the bee that visits the flower that blooms from the bud that formed using the food made by the leaf that used the water brought by the stem that grew from the sprout that grew from the seed that lay in the Earth.
This is the pollen carried by the bee that visits the flower that blooms from the bud that formed using the food made by the leaf that used the water brought by the stem that grew from the sprout that grew from the seed that lay in the Earth. 
This is the seed formed from the pollen carried to the egg by the bee that visited the flower that bloomed from the bud that formed using the food made by the leaf that used the water brought by the stem that grew from the sprout that grew from the seed that lay in the Earth.
This is the wind that blew the seed down
To the Earth.

​-MW

The Garden Song by David Mallett 
the epitome of a song for gardeners
Inch by inch, row by row,
Gonna make this garden grow,
All it takes is a rake and a hoe
And a piece of fertile ground.
Inch by inch, row by row,
Someone bless these seeds I sow,
Someone warm them from below
'Till the rain comes tumbling' down.

Pullin' weeds, pickin' stones,
We are made of dreams and bones,
Feel the need to grow my own,
For the time is near at hand.
Grain for grain, sun and rain,
We are part of Nature's chain,
Tune my body and my brain
To the music of the land.

Plant your rows straight and long,
Temper them with prayer and song,
Mother Earth will make you strong
If you give her love and care.
An old crow watching hungrily
From his perch in yonder tree.
In my garden I'm as free 
As that feathered thief up there.


​A Reminder

Life is a precious miracle,
Live it fully.
Love is a blessed bond,
Nurture it warmly.
Adversity is a challenge,
Meet it boldly,
Death is a final act,
Accept it calmly.

Vain Questions

Whence, whither, why?
The mysteries of life!
We'll never cease to ask
And we'll never know.

When All Else Fails

Let your mind wade naked up a stream,
Walk barefoot over fields and through forest,
And skim unburdened over rivers and lakes,
Dross you'll shed and be rejuvenated,
And fractured life will be a whole again.
Nature can mend and heal when all else fails!

A Paean to Life

All Life should be treasured!
This I long did doubt.
Years it took and growth
Before my mind and heart
Were sage enough to think so.

All life's an awesome miracle
And every living thing
Reflects that glow and wonder
That's beyond all ken,
That comes and goes arcanely.

That there are animals,
Plants, bacteria,
Life forms of every ilk,
In endless variety,
Cannot but awe and rapture!

That water, air and earth
Teem with complex life,
That life adapts, evolves
And thereby stays alive,
Cannot but awe and humble!

That humans can feel and think
And replicate themselves,
That birds can sing and fly,
Elephants mate and mourn,
Cannot but awe and puzzle!

That spiders spin silk webs
To catch their wary fare,
That chickens lay their eggs
And eggs bring forth their chicks,
Cannot but awe and amaze!

That flowers blush and smell
And bless the earth with seeds,
That acorns will be oaks
And trees become a forest,
Cannot but awe and silence!

We cannot but stand in awe
Of life's many mysteries.
Describe we can and do,
Know we never will,
But treasure life we can and should!

​-JM

Pensive Pauses by JM

Life is no less a wondrous agony than it is an agonizing wonder.

But for its many suns, the universe would be one vast black hole.

We know there is an earth and wish there were a heaven.

Earth's our fact and heaven's our fancy.





Píccola weighs in:

When it is warm and sunny
I like to go out the door
In the garden to explore.

Picture
But when it is cloudy and cold,
I stay in my nest
​to have a rest.
Picture
As always, comments welcome. Let us know if you'd like to be put on the mailing list. Once a month postings usually. 
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Photos used under Creative Commons from Eric Kilby, tracie7779, USFWS Mountain Prairie, Denis Bourez, jinxmcc, Japanese beauty, voyager2014, Kirt Edblom, nevil zaveri (thank you for 15+M views:), kennethkonica, FaceMePLS, Marianne Serra, irio.jyske, 270862, NASA Hubble, steviep187, Keith Laverack, corsi photo, Howard J Duncan, Luna sin estrellas, Lynda W1, bvi4092, John Brighenti, Kecko, Cambridge Cat, Alexxx1979, ashwin kumar, vastateparksstaff, Marian Elizabeth May, sussexbirder, ell brown, David Meurin, Rod Raglin, Swallowtail Garden Seeds, A_Peach, timo_w2s, acryptozoo, NASA Hubble