By Gloria Heffernan
Central New York Branch
I worry that perhaps I have written
too many poems about dawn,
too many descriptions of the way
the sunrise paints the hillside gold
for just a few minutes,
and the sense of blessing
when I look up from my coffee
at just the right moment,
and how that light
stays with me all day,
even if it’s cloudy by noon.
I worry that it might start to sound
like a cliché – this fascination
with the squirrels that leap
like miniature gymnasts
through the maple tree
outside my kitchen window,
the way the Blue Jays rise early
to preen on the feeder as if
getting ready for a big date,
the way the deer saunter
the empty expanse of the fairway
that borders our fence
long before the golfers arrive.
I worry about these oft-repeated odes
to early morning until I pick up
the newspaper and see each day’s repetition
of greed and hunger and hatred,
each headline repeating the grievances
of the day before without fear of redundancy,
and I steel myself against despair
by looking out once again
at that golden light that returns like breath—
a lifeline against the darkness.
Your poem is a bright light reminding us of dawn’s promise. I liken it to photographing the same tree, trail, or flowers; they bring us joy, and no one sees them the same way, no matter how often they are talked about or imagined.
Lovely images, sentiments and timely conclusion.
AMEN. A prayer for each morning. Uplifting, lightening the days’ load. Thank you for your use of these words.
Beautiful. Poetry as antidote.
Such lovely worrying!!!
I like your descriptive contrast of the beauty and simple joys of nature compared with the greed and corruption of mankind.
I love the optimism in your poem, the idea that the dawn of each new day still holds promise. Watching nature is always better than reading headlines!
I read it once and once again and will read again tomorrow.
It is a giving poem and this reader thankfully receives it.
You go Girl……loved your poem, flashes of your moments enlivened my day. Thank you!
Yes
Impressive. Thought-provoking. Reminding us of the great beauty God has created for us is never redundant.
Lots of beauty and truth in this one!
I love how you have formed the beauty of the day for all of us to join you. Thank you!
What a beautiful reminder to look for and take in all the moments of beauty, awe, and joy that come to us each day, despite the worries and cares of the times.
You have captured exactly what I feel, looking out my windows, weather, sky, nature, and how it soothes the ache of current world issues. We are searching for hope I think. Thank you for your words. Keep writing them for all of us.
Lovely images, sentiments and timely conclusion. My sentiments exactly.