Curves

Gravity pulls the stream

around silver curves.

The current
feels like God
guiding my hand
over the page.

Lines scrolling.
Gratitude flowing.

© 2017 Richard Havenga

Photo Location: Crested Butte, Colorado 

Carried

Grazing the inner landscape for ideas,
I am carried into a wider existence,
a greater awareness,
carried by the current of creativity.

As the growing vine
reaches out with tendrils,
seeking an elevated position,
carried closer to the light,

I carry this invitation to you;
to enter the oportunities
of artistic expression,
as you expand your love of the land.

© 2017 Richard Havenga

Silver Dispersal

Even the humble dandelion
displays intricate precision
in the delicate details
of its silver dispersal.

© 2017 Richard Havenga

September Stage

As summer settles
into September,
asters and goldenrod
accept the invitation
to audition
for this month
of transition.

Yellow and gold,
purple and lavender,
assume their places
on this September stage.

In the background,
from the percussion section,
acorns and hickory nuts
zip through the leaves,
pound the ground,
and bounce off my
inverted canoe.

During these cooler nights,
cricket calls seem calmer
as they continue to crank out
their calibrated wing rustles;
soft stridulations 
with temperature affecting
their measured notes.

The stage is set.
Harmony prevails.
The audience approves.

© 2017 Richard Havenga

Practicing Goodbye

Memories rise and fall
with the undulating waves.

Remembering washes over my mind,
then retreats down the wet slope of sand.

Like creation in front of me,
like creation repeating the past.

Like a flock of gulls rising together,
then landing together.

Like sensing the amenities of heaven,
or the sense of heaven.

Like practicing how to say goodbye
when it's time to leave or time to die.

Like the tide coming in and going out,
coming in and going out...

© 2017 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. Sunset Beach, North Carolina

2. Cape Perpetua - Yachats, Oregon

3. Holland State Park Beach - Holland, Michigan

4. Neptune State Scenic Viewpoint - Oregon

Passage of Time

"Time passes slowly up here in the mountains." ~ Written by Bob Dylan; sung by Judy Collins © 1970


The day is still young
up here in the mountains.

I am witnessing:

the birth of clouds,
the evaporation of dew,

the sharp, clear notes
of a White-crowned Sparrow,

the slow opening of
alpine wildflowers,

and green mountains 
reflected in dew drops.

I am hoping for:

a pattern of lines,
a collection of words,
that will witness
the sweet and gentle
passage of time.

© 2017 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. Yosemite National Park - California

2. Cottonwood Pass 12,126' - Colorado 

3. Snowy Range Scenic Byway - Medicine Bow Mountains - Wyoming

September Morning

While I was walking
through this September morning,
Goldenrod invited itself
into my poem.

So I welcomed its
color and structure
into my Naturalist's head,
noticed the yellow sprays
of arching florets,

watched bees
plunging for pollen,

but more than
Botanical biographies,
I observed
with uncommon senses
the enhancements 
offered here and now:

here;
commonly clogging
the forgotten fields,

now;
announcing
the introduction of autumn.

These golden towers of life;
alive and dancing
in the light
of a new day.

© 2017 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1, 4, & 5. Home Fields & Woods

2. & 3.  Townsend Park - Kent County, Michigan