In addition to Poetry Friday, one of my favorite places to hang out is Ethical ELA during the monthly Open Write. This month we were hosted by Stacey Joy and Seana Hurd Wright.
I am sharing three poems I wrote in response to their prompts.
I Believe in Morning
reflections
bayou glows
heron hunts
chickadee
dee-dee-dees
feeder swings
doodle curls
on my lap
All is well
“Let us open and open without knowing how” Billy Merrell from “Moth” ( found in Dictionary for a Better World)
Like the butterfly in spring, Let
your heart know the us
of the universe: We open
the screen door and
swallowtail flies to the open
skies without
anyone holding on or even knowing
where it was going, just how.
St. James Tricube
In this place
veil lifted
parting kiss
In this place
holy water
baby blessed
In this place
ashes laid
eternal rest
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Reflections on the Teche 
St. James! Be still, my heart. Perfect poem for the church of my childhood, too.
What a lovely snapshot of morning and I loved the swallowtail. Gets me hopeful for spring despite the 24″ of snow we got! Your St. James tricube captured so much in so few words. I could just see each moment. Thanks for hosting, Margaret!
Lovely poems, all. And what a wonderful swallowtail! Enjoyed the vivid images in your morning poem. 🙂 Thanks for hosting this week.
Thanks for this rich post Margaret, all the birds, and images—I especially like your “Let us open and open without knowing how” its lovely! Thanks also for hosting!
A delightful intermingling of words and images, Margaret. Enjoy the diverse forms you employed and the resultant words. Particularly like your butterfly image and poem. Magnificent swallowtail. Thanks also for hosting, Margaret.
Thank you for hosting! This month’s of Open Write was productive for you! That tricube is so special to leave on. All those very sacred emotions in such a sacred space. I love the flowers at St. James.
Those were the flowers for my mother’s funeral. Thanks!
Your poem shows how your home church really is a home, Margaret. Thanks for all the poems and for hosting xo
Your Church must feel your family’s love & devotion – the Tricube is deeply heartfelt. Swallostail Midwife you Are – again, I believe! And tho I’m writing this at nite, morning is my Fine Time, too, especially in Nature. Lovely to just stop by [ don’t have a new post from last time…} Take Good Care.
Oh, Margaret, so beautiful! I love these sweet small poems that say so much in so few words. And the photos! They add so much. I especially loved seeing your swallowtail ready to head out the screen door. My favorite is probably the St. James tricube. The /s/ sounds and rhymes, the succinct capturing of the place, and the photo adds so much too. Thank you for hosting today!
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Thank you for sharing all this poetry goodness and for hosting us. The tricube is wonderfully moving.
Thank you for hosting, Margaret. Each poem is such a glimpse into beauty. Three forms; three journeys. And those flowers for your mom are so lovely. Thank you for beginning my day with goodness. xo, a.
Love these! I love “the us / of the universe”!
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I see the chickadees have been visiting you, too! I love how all your poems evoke such emotion, and how the one about St. James tells the history of a lifetime. Thanks for hosting today.
Margaret! Your poems were such good medicine this morning. Thank you. I believe in morning, too…
Dear Margaret, thank you for these three! I’m rather fond of “I believe” poems. Appreciate you hosting, too. xo
Margaret, your lovely nature poems comforted me and gave me spring on this still-freezing day, so thank you. I LOVE your St. James tricube beyond words. It was stunning in how it captured a life in 3 images. Bravo! Love the accompanying photo, too!
Each of these poems is so different and so lovely, Margaret! I adore the title of your first poem; the idea that the swallowtail is just going into the open skies, no destination, just flying; and the brevity and simplicity of your tricube that encompasses a lifetime. Thanks for hosting!
Oh, I believe in morning too! When all the simple things are unstained by what the day may bring. Thanks for hosting–I just tosse dup a post about the fault line form since folks seemed interested in it.
I’d like a workshop in doing this form. I didn’t quite execute it.
Margaret, your poems are all magical; however, your “found poem ” is such a strong metaphor for life as we all just “go” usually without always knowing where we are going to end up on this journey through life. It’s been on my heart all week.
What an absolutely stunning altar.
Tricubes just lend themselves to pauses and meter and I think the reflection of the breaths and pauses of a service (also to wild birdsong that stops and starts as it will) match that beautifully. Thanks for sharing these.
Tanita, I regret that I am unable to comment on your blog posts. Your WordPress doesn’t accept my log in and I’m too scared to lose my own access to try to change it. Nevertheless, I appreciate your comments. Your poem Updraft is a perfect echo of Sze’s poem Downwind. I love your choice of imagery when the sky clears after days of rain. Your words echo with details, emotion, and conviction. Thanks for sharing.
(Thanks for letting me know about my wayward site! WordPress hates me some days… )
Margaret, your poems are lovely. Of course, I am partial to the nature specific ones. How awesome to have butterflies eclose in February! I am envious of that! Thanks for hosting.
Margaret, I love your photos and all three of your poems, which have beautiful imagery. Your tricubes and found poem are so heartfelt with few words. I love the title of your first tricube, the sounds of your alliteration, consonance of /s/, onomatopoeia, and especially the lines doodle curls, and All is well. In your found poem I love how your word choices about the beginning of the swallowtail’s live lead the reader to “let us open and open without knowing how.”
Your St. James Tricube seems like a beautiful and poignant ode to how your family’s lives and memories entwine with your church. I resonate with your family’s events and feel the emotions. Thank you for sharing your inspiration and being a great poetry mentor. As I have been writing, one of my cats, Lars and I have also been listening to and watching chickadees, house finches, and nut hatches in a tree outside our window.
How beautiful, each of your reflections, Margaret. Peaceful, linked by yearning. Thank you for hosting.
Margaret, thank you for sharing so much through these three poems and your pictures. Within the last 24 hours I’ve sat and just stared at both chickadees at my feeder and a heron stalking the shoreline at a pond near the house. With so much going on in the world, a moment of “all is well” is appreciated so much!
Margaret, I thought I wrote a comment on Friday but I see that I must not have sent it forward. Your St. James Tricube is so beautifully written. I think of life finding its way home in eternal sleep. Each one of your poems are filled with wonderful word choice sharing your deep reflection from single prompts.