scent of life

hedge trimmers
whir, vroom
power tool

we approach
labrador azalea
on leash

we sniff the air
sweet aroma
fresh cut ivy

"that's the smell
of the ivy's blood"
azalea doesn't seem
to care

amputated leaves
and vines
will soon feel
rigor mortis

i wonder if
ivy feels

i can't recall 
the scent of human blood
freshly taken
hope i never have to

i wonder if it too  
smells sweet

8/12/11
judithpiper
___________________

sides of summer

sun sits

on the back side of summer now

glowing hue a bit different

softer in the evenings

days are shortening 

a little at a time

sun becoming farther away

each day, tad by tad

on the front side of summer

tadpoles swam in shallow waters

deep brown or black tails 

with heads

one might not conclude 

the bouncy frog by the river bank 

was hatched with no legs

back then
on the other side of summer

august 11, 2011

judithpiper

______________________________

night walk in summer

hubby, grand-dog, and I

post sunset walk,
neighborhood street,
quiet,
headlights
from the occasional passing car

shadows in the woods,
sculpted images
like Dr. Suess trees
that could be monsters
in the night

covered they are
with kudzu

hearty, indestructible kudzu

vines that grow a foot a day,
deep green foliage,
shapely grape-like leaves,
rich in protein for horses

vines woven into baskets,
root powdered into thickener,
ingredient in candy,
killer of trees

but one would not know
it's a murderer,
neither does the kudzu

as its beautiful green
bonds together the hillsides
and trees
smothering out life-giving
sun light

i enjoy the shadows
on our pre-bedtime walk

august 10, 2011
judithpiper

field of ferns

field of green
sways in the breeze
like seaweed under water
dancing with the current

dividing the field, a blacktop
the structure placed by man
to traverse our mother's elements
like a submarine amongst sea weeds

tar, earth, wind ferns
steel, water, sea greens
nature, inventions, ingenuity
responsibility, respect, awe

august 09, 2011
judithpiper
__________________

the present

***************
ashamed
of things past

not of things yet future,
though I know there
will be more

hopefully
less than in the past

august 8, 2011
judithpiper

***************

Ledger's Balance

Time rushes through my life
like a river's untamed rapids
I embrace a rock for anchor
~but alas, I'm swept away...

Time trickles through my fingers
like water through a sieve
I clinch and try to grasp it
~with no affect upon the flow...

Time sits, patiently waiting
like a father for an absent son
I behold their yearned reunion
~and for a moment, glimpse eternity...

May our days spent by seconds
tip the ledger's balance
toward time that sits
~momentary glimpses of eternity...

february 12, 2oo8
judithpiper

***
~Nuff said...
***