Watching Waiting Writing

 

I'm watching the long light of evening

spreading warmly across the clouds,

watching these words spreading warmly

across the long lines of this page.

Waiting for inspiration to arrive.

Working to reveal surrounding blessings.

Writing to share the miracles in nature.

Willing to live a life of profound attention.

Wanting just a little more time.

© 2022 Richard Havenga

Photo Location:

Big Crooked Lake - Kent County - Michigan

Flourish

Each new flower

in my perennial garden

begins to open, as slowly

as a small thought.

Then,

bursting with its

assigned color, and

displaying its unique

inflorescence,

it proclaims

at its climax

in a compelling

announcement:

"I am created.

I exist.

I flourish.

Look at me!"

© 2022 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. ~ Home Garden - Cannonsburg, Michigan

Without a Map

 

I think I'll drive West

without a map.

After rolling over the prairies,

I'll hit the Rocky Mountains.

Then, maybe I'll take a right, and

head for the Snowy Mountains in Wyoming.

After that, perhaps a left

to search for a quiet cove

in the Grand Tetons.

Maybe I'll camp for a few days,

maybe I'll camp for a week.

Photograph the moose browsing

along the Snake River.

Watch the Pronghorn prancing

through the sagebrush,

kicking up dust with their hooves.

Write a few lines

in my poetry notebook.

© 2022 Richard Havenga

1. Tie Siding, Wyoming

2. Rocky Mountain National Park - Colorado

3. & 4. Grand Teton National Park - Wyoming

5. Home Deck - Cannonsburg, Michigan

Gooseberries

 

As the angle of light lowers,

I'm walking through brittle sage

outside this renowned mountain town.

Gooseberry bushes grow thick

along an old stretch

of rusting barbed-wire fence.

Planted unknowingly by birds;

the same species of bird

now eating their orange-red berries.

Their orange-red heads

with a bright yellow collar

tucked into black shoulders;

Western Tanagers share

the bounty of Gooseberries

with their newly-fledged young,

as the thick, orange-red light of evening

warms their striking colors,

and the foothills around Estes Park.

© 2022 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. 2. & 3. Estes Park, Colorado

 

 

Walking on Water

 

Water striders,

buoyant on their springy legs,

skim over the smooth surface,

walk upon the lens of water,

skate across reflected clouds

that float on Bear Creek. 

© 2022 Richard Havenga

Photo Location:

Bear Creek - Townsend Park - Kent County - Michigan

Still 4

 

Summer ripens into August,

spawning heat, haze, and humidity;

the air so still,

not a leaf moves.

The surface of the lake

so smooth, so still;

lily pads are glossy green plates.

A table setting on calm water.

I'm still waiting

for the next

rigorous thunderstorm

to arouse the atmosphere.

© 2022 Richard Havenga

You may also enjoy:

"Still 3" ~ December 16, 2021

"Still 2" ~ April 29, 2019

"Still" ~ September 12, 2016

Photo Locations:

1. McCarthy Lake - Kent County - Michigan

2. Ludington State Park - beach - Ludington, Michigan

Lemon Drops

 

An American Goldfinch

dropped out of God's blue sky

to visit my garden of annuals.

He landed on an arching stem

of Cosmos, and rode it 

until it stilled.

Then, balanced there,

like a little lemon drop

with a snazzy black vest;

he pecked and picked ripening seeds

with his pointy orange beak;

each time tipping his jaunty  black cap,

grateful for each fragment

from this little garden,

then back to the blue sky and gone.

© 2022 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. 2. & 3. Home Garden - Cannonsburg, Michigan

Rainsong

 

First, the fields and forests

are tormented

by the wind.

Then cumulus bottoms

darken and

threaten.

Lightning stabs and startles.

Thunder growls and rumbles.

Large drops of rain

splatter the soil,

churn the surface

of the lake.

The song of the rain

commands your attention.

Saturates your senses.

Demands to be heard.

© 2022 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. Flathead Lake - Montana

2. Pickerel Lake - Kent County - Michigan

3. Estero, Florida

Abundance

 

West Michigan orchards and fields

produce an abundance of delicious fruits:

Tart red cherries

from Leelanau Peninsula,

shine glossy in the summer sun,

ripened for your homemade pies.

Bunches of plump blueberries

grow densely on bushes,

ready for you to pick and

put in your freezer and muffins.

Clumps of apples

hang heavily on branches

waiting to get into your

mouth and your strudel.

Michigan grapes

thrive on the vine,

prepared to be poured

into your glass as wine.

© 2022 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. Northport, Michigan

2. West Olive, Michigan

3. Kropf Orchards ~ Lowell, Michigan

4. & 5. Old Mission Peninsula ~ Grand Traverse County - Michigan

6. Cabernet Sauvignon ~ Home Deck