It’s been a month since my last walk
and it’s time to get back into it.
So unusual to feel the sun’s heat in my back,
this early in the day.
Perhaps I should have worn sunscreen
like the office girl I just passed –
the warm, beachy smell incongruous
with her pinstriped suit, and joggers.
A babble of Farsi, ending with jubilant laughter,
gushes out of a taxi’s window,
the driver’s eyes alight, above his dazzling grin –
shared with me by his gentle nod.
A butterfly dances in front of me
soon joined by his mate – seeming to kiss
then part, in joyful random flight
before settling on a rose in full bloom.
Raucous giggles and squeals pull my gaze
to three little girls, separating to avoid
their classmate’s outstretched tagging hand
and make me smile at my own memories.
It dawns on me that the gloom
that has plagued all winter has lifted,
when I realise that I forgot to notice
the Funeral Home today.
vivchook 
Very nice – and I’m so envious of your spring .. Love how you paint little scenes in each stanza.. And that little twist of recovery at the end.. (So nice to leave the first comment)
Awww, Bjorn.. Thank you.. This is the one I was working on last week, that needed tweaking. I’ll be putting it on dVerse in my morning.. Is this the right way to do it? Am a neophyte, remember.. Mwah!
Ah,, you can also start to visit a few of the one that visited last week.. Some of them have poems out already 🙂 We have had a discussion on visiting and revisiting a lot off-line. Check out the discussion that’s up on dverse since last week.
love ur chickens, the beachy smells, and a good walk… thanks for taking us along
Thank you, Rose. It really was as I described.. I’m glad you enjoyed it. x.Vivienne.
I’m sorry, Patricia – for some reason, I thought your name was Rose. Please accept my humble apology. x.V.x
Aww–this is so lovely!
Thank you, Audrey. It was a lovely morning. x.Vivienne.
You clearly don’t live where I live 🙂
Love the gentle description of your first signs of Summer mingling with memories.
Hahahaha! No, Australia is warming up beautifully at the moment. I hoped it would bring some sunshine & lightness to those in the depths of winter, so this is for you. Thank you, so much. x.Vivienne.
The last stanza is a real killer!
Thank you, Tim. Yes, it was a good epiphany to have. Thank you. x.Vivienne.
i enjoyed accompanying you on your walk! And for some reason I think it is a good thing not to have noticed the Funeral Home.
Yes, it was. A good epiphany to have. Healthy. And thank you..I’ll take you with me on my next walk. In spirit. x.Vivienne.
love the attention to detail in this…its nice when the season of darkness has passed and we can revel in the light…and even miss seeing the funeral home as well…smiles…nice piece…
Thank you, Brian. A change of tone from last week. And yes, I always seem to notice the funeral home. But not that day. It felt good.
Love the images and the capture. The end was perfect.
Thank you, Ayala. That’s so good to hear, especially from you. thank you. x.Vivienne.
you’ve plucked each detail and carefully placed them together, each verse a standing image, and with that sharp close, you’ve neatly tied the write together. Like this quite much ~ M
Thank you – it was a day of heightened awareness, so am glad I managed to get it right. Thank you. x.Vivienne.
Spent 4 months in Sydney in 1977, January onward, and what a shock to know our winter is your summer, that you go south to get cool, north to get warm; loved this poem, it had grit & heart; thanks for sharing.
Yes, we’re upside down here. It was a pleasure to bring some summer warmth to all of you as your first snows are falling. Thank you for your lovely comments, Glenn. Love your work, too. x.Vivienne.
hi 🙂
I walked with you. your conveyance of a sprung step and a sense of weightlessness is full of flavour and verse, colour and taste – a sensual sketching of a walk thru a happy space and time, wisely tempered by the reaper but not crushed: continue to spring, best you can 🙂
swap ‘verse’ for ‘verve’ to make sense, oops 🙂
hahahahaha!! Yes, verve is good.. but verse was in context, too. Thank you, Arron, for walking with me. And enjoying it. I felt I had calm company that day – maybe it was you..? x.Vivienne.
Vivienne, I found you at dverse, so glad you linked up. I loved this day in the life, the simple journey that ends up a small miracle! The nicest touches were the butterflies and not noticing the funeral home… very telling. We’re just into winter in Wisconsin, so I hope you are fully enjoying your lovely spring. Peace, Amy Barlow Liberatore
Gosh – thank you, for all your kind words. They are so appreciated. Yes, I’m only new here, and new to Poetry, too, as a matter of fact, but it’s been such a welcoming place. I have to tell you that I have always wanted to live through a year in Wisconsin – a place I have yearned for since reading Laura Ingalls Wilder as a young girl. So, I know you might think I’m nuts, but I envy you.. Enjoy your festive season. And think of my envy.. hahahaha! x.Vivienne.
thanks for taking us with you on your walk…. very vivid painting of the scenes…i def. could see those little girls..smiles… and love how the sunshine helps us forget the darker things a bit
Thank you, Claudia. Yes, you’ve got it in one. Thank you for reading & commenting. Very appreciated. x.Vivienne.
just thought i’d stop by to say hello…
Thank you for taking us along your nice and warm walk! So very different from my cold morning drives.
Yes, well, everyone seemed so cold last week.. a little antipodean sun can be shared with you. I’m glad you felt you were there with me. Thank you, Claudia, for reading and commenting. It means a lot to me. x.Vivienne.
Sorry, Gabriella – I typed Claudia.. so sorry. Thank you, tho, for taking the time to read and comment. x.V.x
Thanks for sharing your early summer walk with us – and welcome to dVerse … smiles. I lov the way you have linked these beautifully and closely observed images together – and the close is marvellous- forgetting to notice the funeral home. I liked this a lot; can you tell?
Thank you, Tony. Your comments are very appreciated. I’m so glad you liked it.. and yes, I can.. hahahahaha! Thank you. x.Vivienne.
how we suddenly realize we haven’t noticed
yes, THAT feeling
Thank you. Yes, that feeling.. Amazing, isn’t it? Thank you, so much. x.Vivienne.
Enjoyed this walk and the butterflies so free kissing and then taking flight..that whole stanza
brings memories of spring but, here we are heading into winter..
Yes, I understand that.. I hope this took you away from the cold for a short while, at least. Thank you for your lovely comments. x.Vivienne.
I love this! I am right there walking with you…feeling the sun, hearing the sounds, seeing nature….wonderful!
Thank you, Mary. That’s wonderful. x.Vivienne.
I like the sharp contrast of the funeral home with a wonderful spring reverie. The walk you paint for us makes me yearn for spring.
Thank you, Ronald. That’s a lovely comment, & glad you could feel it. I hope your winter is kind to you. x.Vivienne.
An unexpected ending to a lovely poem.
Thank you, that’s very appreciated. x.Vivienne.
Very nice. I love the little twist in the last stanza. All the imagery & senses in this piece are wonderful. 🙂
Thank you, Katie. So glad you liked it. x.Vivienne.
Ha ha! That Funeral Home is certainly mad at you! *smile* Light and lovely you write. I am insisting upon form in poetry, and you keep a form by the stanzas congruent with each other. It gives a notion of order. And the message is great. Each stanza is a different picture, and the up-building stack of pictures create an expectation in the reader for a coming, an expectation you elegantly meet by the anointment of the last stanza. And the message is moralistic. It is a very nice poem.
|:. † .:|
Thank you for All of that, Anders. I have a lot to learn, so the constructive comments are very appreciated. As are the ‘appreciative’ comments. And, as to the Funeral Home – I think it’s more me picking at scabs, this continual noticing of it, rather than it having something against me.. At least, I hope so.. Yikes! hahahahaha!! Thanks again, Anders. x.V.xxxxx
*smile* That is a way to see it. But I was not precise enough. I meant The Funeral Home must be mad at you for ignoring it. Anyway, death is death. Death is not life.
hahahaha!! Yes, well, I think it has turned away from me this last week. It looms over other people now.. Thanks, Anders. x.V.x
very strong closing pull with the sudden mention of the funeral home, esp after such a stream of welcomed spring like flowing (kissing butterflies, nice!) – i see where you have 3 young girls in your poem also – associations and smiles, enjoyed the scenes, thanks so much 😉
Thank you, Felipe.. That’s so kind of you.. And yes, 3 little girls.. Not mine, just children in a school yard. But I’m glad you found that similarity, and enjoyed my poem. Thank you. x.Vivienne.
enjoyed it very much 🙂
Ha.. You seem far too young to be looking at the funeral notices.Thank you for commenting on my post.
hahahahaha!! Yes, I am.. but it always seems to jump into my awareness, and turns my thoughts to sad things.. Not that day, tho. Nor since. Thank you, Cressida – and it was my pleasure to read yours. It made me smile, the whimsy of it. x.Vivienne.
What wonderful little scenes you set. I particularly enjoyed the butterflies.
Thank you, Pea. So glad to hear that. x.Vivienne.
Lovely visuals ,,,, and that last stanza … WOW !!!
Thank you. That’s really kind of you, and means a lot to me.. x.Vivienne.
I was with your walk & delighting with the scenery you have painted ~ Its terribly cold in here right now and I wouldn’t mind going out for a bit under the sun ~ The ending though was unexpected, but I admire a good twist to a post ~
Thank you, Grace..Lovely comments. I hope you get a break in the weather soon.
Also, I’m sorry, it wasn’t meant to be reblogged.. I have a new computer, & have lost all my cookies, so am having trouble with my wordpress accounts. But yes, it’s been very hot here, and this was written when it was uncharacteristically warm in late Spring.
I loved your poem for dverse this week. I’ve posted as part of OneVoice Poetry this week. Nothing individually. Too busy with my girls on summer school vacation to write, except the collaborative poem. Soon, though.. xVivienne.
I enjoyed your poem again, Viv. It really is a good thing to see life optimistically; and it is obvious from your poem that you do that! Always good to see you.
aww, thank you Mary.. Yes, the reblogging of my poem was an accident. A new computer, cookies not working, etc.. was trying to do something else, but the poem went out again. Gah! And thank you. Nice to see you, too. Always. Loved your story, too, BTW. xV.xxxxxxxxxxxx
Thank you for visiting my blog and for your nice comment! I hope to read more of your poems in a not too distant future.
You’re welcome, Gabriella. It was a pleasure to read. And yes, once my girls go back to school after the long summer vacation, I’ll have time to write again. This week, I just worked on the OneVoice Poetry collaboration for dverse. Nothing solo for a few weeks, tho.
Lovely setting, so well captured.