This first day of August is time for a new Inklings challenge. Catherine Flynn asked us to write a triptych poem using Irene Latham’s model poem here. I also looked at Summer Triptych by Linda Pastan.
This summer with my mother’s passing, I have been thinking about the three summers that stand out in my mind in the long process of losing my parents. The first summer I had to face the reality of their aging was 2019 when they decided to move to an independent living apartment. They left the house full, and my siblings and I had to clean it out.
In the summer of 2022, I was grieving the death of my father and searching for a sign of him. And this year, my mother…
Solace, peace, comes to me in this poem. I hope you find it there, too.
Summer Bird Triptych
July 2019
The hummingbird feeder,
blown glass
swirling
primary colors,
reflects the sun,
attracts a ruby throat hovering
while I sit alone on the porch,
Remembering.
July 2022
I hear a tap, tap at the window.
A bright yellow prothonotary.
Does he see his reflection?
Does he want me to come out?
Is it you, Dad?
July 2025
The crows seem angry.
The Merlin app identifies fish crows.
They call with a fervor I feel deep in my belly,
calling me back to nature
and myself.
To see how other Inklings met this challenge:
Linda @A Word Edgewise
Catherine @Reading to the Core
Molly @Nix the Comfort Zone
Mary Lee @A(nother) Year of Reading
Heidi @my juicy little universe
Reflections on the Teche 