September 2022
Bio Note: I find peace outdoors, listening to birds, identifying plants, noticing Earth’s beauty while practicing gratitude along the way. My eighth book, The Ethereal Effect – A Collection of Villanelles, is forthcoming from Kelsay Books (2023). I'm an artist, animal lover, a nature enthusiast, and a poetry editor of the online literary magazine Halfway Down the Stairs.
Cardinal in the Ginkgo,
Dinner on the Deck
The male visits, red as a Roma.
He perches on the railing,
observes my presence.
An olive oil sheen
beckons with an invitation
as the aroma of basil
elates an olfactory sensation.
Here, the elegance
of tomatoes, the bliss of this meal.
I’d offer him a taste,
though he’s engaged
in a treetop serenade.
We’re wed to the evening,
red as a Roma
with an olive oil sheen,
what cheer, what cheer.
In the Bosom of My Roots
The cedar trees bustle, engage my fascination.
Gray squirrels frolic like children
on monkey bars, hang to release with impish
tumbles. Rodents resemble simians
in a jungle gym of branches. As the gymnasts
perform, trills and warbles populate
the yard. Avian visitors sing atop the ginkgo
as bergamot brightens beneath
the weeping pea, flashes its purple pyrotechnics.
Robins and sparrows, cardinals
and chickadees celebrate Minnesota’s warmth.
It’s summer. I’m here,
back again, in the bosom of my roots
where it all started over sixty years ago.
©2022 Jeannie E. Roberts
Editor's Note: If this poem(s) moves you please consider writing to the author (email address above) to say what it is about the poem you like. Writing to the author is what builds the community at Verse Virtual. It is very important. -JL