Rising Light in Midwinter (from the journal)

Rising light

in midwinter.

Spring buds swell.  2-4-13

Nestled in the low winter wood,

the golden ball shares

liquid light.  2-5-13

Splatted like rain

in the moving wood--

a light burst.  2-6-13

Daffodils

Erupting from the frozen earth,

the blunt-nosed, jeweled crystals

push up, the yellow dreams

folded inside.  2-6-13

The first moment greeting 

the morning light.  It bathes the eyes,

this brand new light.  2-7-13

Fluffed, redbird

comforts himself

in juniper’s winter green.  2-9-13

The midnight wind

blew itself a brilliant day

with sparkles all around.  2-9-13

Holly holds her hands up,

meets the horizontal sun

with cupped vertical leaves.

A touching moment, at dawn.  2-10-13

It’s like a shower,

today’s light.

A milk shower.  2-16-13

There was a shuddering

out in the woods.

What passed through left

a wake.  2-12-13

Morning time in the light,

waiting for warmth and breath,

sweet breath, shared.  2-12-13

Soft like snow,

the light rests

on hollies.  2-13-13

Somewhere there is a verb

to describe dried pokeweeds

hanging dark and vertical over

the horizontal juniper splattered

with snow.  2-14-13

I recognize the shoveler in the leaves—robin.

And then—a friend.  2-15-13

Between one tree

and the next, squirrel counts

all his morning moments.

Just for fun.  2-16-13

Weighted with the world,

lady bluejay sits unmoving

in the bare crab apple.  2-18-13

The wild raspberry cane

has turned itself red.

Time to breathe the light again.  2-18-13

Falling from the cloudless sky—

snow petals.

Redbird stretches her wing.  2-19-13

Dancing in the winter sun,

hollies moved by a circling wind

celebrate.  2-20-13