The Hurried Clouds

 

Cloud shadows

sweep the foothills,

race up the mountains;

where they're lifted

back into the sky

to reunite with

the hurried clouds.

© 2024 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. Coronado National Memorial - Sierra Vista, Arizona

2. Oro Valley, Arizona

3. Crested Butte, Colorado

River of Light

 

This winding river

reflects the sky's light,

meanders through the valley,

illuminates my imagination,

inspires a current of  words

that flow with clarity.

With eyes entranced,

I am drawn into 

intimacy with the land.

Enchanted and contented

with this river of light

flowing through this moment.

© 2024 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. Rocky Mountain National Park - Colorado

2. & 3. Crested Butte, Colorado

Bouquet of Praise

 

Does your heart sing

each time you step outside on these

summer mountain mornings?

Do you feel like

you're in the presence

of a benevolent source?

When you discover beauty

in the outdoor world,

do you reflect and share?

Are you ready

to paint with words

a bouquet of praise?

© 2023 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. Mary ~ Crested Butte, Colorado

2. & 3. West Elk Mountains ~ Colorado

4. Sarah ~ Mount McKinnon ~ Utah

Finding Poetry II

 

Once again, 

I'm driving these country roads,

following the curves, 

the backroads of my mind;

hoping to discover

new images that can fill

the pages of my notebook.

I will stop often,

get out of the truck,

and use my camera.

Walking slow, I notice more.

Stopping often, I absorb

the secrets of the land.

Collecting fragments

and intricate details,

I begin to find my poetry.

© 2022 Richard Havenga

You may also like: "Finding Poetry" - December 23, 2019 

Photo Locations:

1. Crested Butte, Colorado

2. Louisville, Colorado

3. Sonoita, Arizona

4. Canon Township - Kent County - Michigan

Wide

Throughout this vast landscape,
wide buttes and mesas
rise from rolling hills.

Through this green valley,
the wandering river yearns
for the wide, blue sea.

Under this arch of sky,
our wide world turns,
bringing each new day.

Beneath the wide-spreading branches
of this broad oak tree,
I rest in the cool shade.

During my wide experience
through many decades of life,
I stand ready for what God sends.

Within this wide expanse of time,
the greatest gift continues to be
now.

© 2020 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. Hurricane Mesa - Wyoming 

2. Crested Butte, Colorado 

3. Chinle, Arizona 

4. Grand Detour, Illinois

5. Santa Catalina Mountains - Arizona

6. Kootenai River - Montana

Moving Words

My words are clinging
to forested foothills,

collecting in cool creeks,

riding rapid rivers,

navigating twists and turns;

joyful in the journey,
giving proper praise
along the path.

Before gathering
in the gulf.

© 2019 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. Rocky Mountain National Park - Colorado

2. Bear Creek - Kent County, Michigan 

3. Arkansas River - Buena Vista, Colorado

4. Crested Butte, Colorado

5. Bonita Springs, Florida

Walk With You

Upon the shoulders of mountains,
under the vast roof of stars,
I will walk with you.

Along the ribbons of rivers,
along the shallow shore,
I will walk with you.

In the cathedral of trees,
on desert paths of cactus,
I will walk with you.

Within choirs of birdsong,
and evenings of crickets,
I will walk with you.

All the days of this life
God has given me to live,
I will walk with you.

Please come along
on this trail of life,
and walk with me.

© 2018 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. West Elk Wilderness - Gunnison National Forest - Colorado

2. Crested Butte - Colorado

3. Sunset Beach - North Carolina

4. Tucson, Arizona

5. Cannonsburg State Game Area - Kent County - Michigan

6. Grand Teton National Park - Wyoming

Chosen

Reader:

I will lend you my words
so you may see
what I have seen
through the eyes of my heart.

May your vision
be illuminated
by words chosen
to shine upon the page;

chosen to reveal
miracles and mysteries,
the spectacles of spring,
the secrets of summer;

chosen to discover
stimulating images
by translating
life into art. 

© 2018 Richard Havenga

Photo Information: 

1. Round-leaved Hepatica - Townsend Park - Kent County, Michigan 

2. Wild Geranium - Home Woods, Cannonsburg, Michigan

3. Blue Flax - Crested Butte, Colorado 

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 

each other

"You and I have memories, longer than the road that stretches out ahead." 
~ Paul McCartney © 1970 ~ Beatles


For my loving wife Mary:

I'm trying to tell here,
of the way we share
the sunlight of our days,
the moon white of our nights,

traveling miles of back roads together,

hiking rugged trails of discovery,
enduring painful storms of loss,

the way we can still pull joy
from ordinary moments
of this extraordinary life.

Laughter, learning,

and love that lasts.

The gifts we find
in our selves
to give each other. 

© 2016 Richard Havenga

♪♪ Happy Birthday ♪♪ Mary !

Photo Locations:

1. West Elk Wilderness - Gunnison National Forest - Colorado  

2. Crested Butte, Colorado

3. "Angel's Landing" trail - Zion National Park - Utah 

4. Iroquois County, Illinois

5. Mary on deck - Home

6. Mary on "Birthday Bike" - Home

7. Rich & Mary- Grand Teton National Park - Wyoming 

Climax

The river's silky, curving torso

rubs up against the solid land,

then is carried to its climax,

blending into the ocean of sighs.

© 2016 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. Crested Butte, Colorado 

2. Yellowstone National Park - Wyoming 

3. Pacific Ocean - Carmel-By-The-Sea, California 

Grateful Heart

With a grateful heart,
I have come here to rest,
and let my eyes adjust
to the future
coming at me
in this, my seventh
decade of life
on the good earth.

Balancing:
the desire to know,
and the need to praise;
I have become intimate
with some small pockets
of life on this planet;

nearly forty years
for the love of birds,

intrigued by the flow
of rivers and streams,

a lingering fascination 
with insects,

enchanted by the short seasons
of wildflowers,

a watcher of clouds
for decades,

a dedication
to dependable trees 
- familiar as friends -

and captivated by the
mysteries of the night sky.

How can I help but
praise you God,
for the gift of life,
and thank you
for my remaining days?

© 2015 Richard Havenga

Photo Locations:

1. Prothonotary Warbler - Allegan State Game Area- Kalamazoo River - Michigan

2. Crested Butte, Colorado  

3. Canon Township - Kent County, Michigan

4. Cardinal Flower - Ada Township - Kent County, Michigan

5. Yosemite National Park - California

6. Grand Teton National Park - Wyoming

7. Grattan Township - Kent County, Michigan

8. Sunset Beach, North Carolina