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    Parker Owens
  • Parker Owens
  • Author
  • 08/31/2018
  • 243 Words
  • 1,439 Views
  • 18 Comments
Poetry posted in this category are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, events, and incidents are created by the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons (living or dead), organizations, companies, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you. 

Disasters, Delights and Other Detours - 29. Tanka for a Summer Day

These are imperfect, I admit. Yet they reflect those lovely August days that epitomize summer. I offer them in tribute to @AC Benus , who inspired them.

Deer dash in darkness

for deep, thorny rose thickets

and brown hares crouch low

in summer grass and clover

at the scuff of my sneakers.

 

The moon’s reflection

dances on riffled shallows,

silver and deep blue

changing to dawn’s lavender,

laughing with me at the day.

 

Dawn’s golden rays shine

on dew flecked emerald wings

stilled for a moment,

but soon to blur in motion

away from my front window.

 

Mist lifts at sunrise,

drifting across fresh mown fields,

it seeps through my soul

in a soundless search for sky,

leaving silvered webs behind.

 

My green zucchini

grow amongst tall spiny stalks,

hiding orange blooms

from squash bugs and striped beetles,

yet found by pollinators.

 

Ripe red tomatoes,

sun warmed, smooth fleshed, ponderous,

heavy in the hand,

promise the taste of August,

like my lover’s tender kiss.

 

The Great Blue Heron

burst from the woods by the creek,

just clearing the bridge;

had I but stretched my hand out,

we might have flown together.

 

High pitched squeaks and squawks,

the whir of wings past my nose,

and avian rage

permeate the evening air

as hummingbirds fight turf wars.

 

Cumulus clouds gleam

pink and purple at sunset,

piled high with necks craned,

to anticipate and watch

the advancing storm with me.

 

Thunder mumbles low,

far away up the valley

where oaks and pines sway;

lightning strikes where glaciers once

ground mountains down into hills.

Leave a comment or a complaint - I am glad to get them all.
Copyright © 2017 Parker Owens; All Rights Reserved.
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Poetry posted in this category are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, events, and incidents are created by the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons (living or dead), organizations, companies, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you. 
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  • Site Administrator
Valkyrie
  • Site Administrator

These are beautiful, Parker.  A perfect tribute to the end of summer.  I can picture them all clearly.  I particularly like "avian rage" and "piled high with neck craned".  Well done, as always :) 

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Parker Owens
56 minutes ago, Mikiesboy said:

lovely end of summer delights.. thanks, Parker.

 

Thank you for reading these, tim. These were fun to observe and note down. They're really enjoyable ways to distill the experiences of the day.

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Mikiesboy
Just now, Parker Owens said:

 

Thank you for reading these, tim. These were fun to observe and note down. They're really enjoyable ways to distill the experiences of the day.

i think favs are the blue heron and especially the tomatoes... that one is very relatable 

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Parker Owens
41 minutes ago, Valkyrie said:

These are beautiful, Parker.  A perfect tribute to the end of summer.  I can picture them all clearly.  I particularly like "avian rage" and "piled high with neck craned".  Well done, as always :) 

 

You're so kind with your reading, Val. Hummingbirds always seem so indignant as they get territorial around the feeder. And now they are fleeing for the south. Distant, towering clouds are another summer joy - their colors are often unusual and vivid. I am glad you liked these.

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Parker Owens
1 minute ago, Mikiesboy said:

i think favs are the blue heron and especially the tomatoes... that one is very relatable 

 

That heron surprised the socks off me; in flight, it was both enormous and silent as it passed just feet over my head. And the feel of a sun-warmed heirloom tomato in the hand is like holding a handful of sunshine...

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Parker Owens
17 minutes ago, BHopper2 said:

Beautiful imagery and I almost felt like I was in the woods somewhere watching this.

Thank you! I'm glad you could experience my August with me, too.

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Parker Owens
Just now, mayday said:

lovely at first sight.

must read more often to feel more than vague bliss and beauty

 

Thank you for reading these - late summer calls out for us to remember the green and the warmth, and the activity that happens only then.

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Parker Owens
30 minutes ago, dughlas said:

And thus a summers day ...

 

Thank you for reading these. September is far too near, I fear. 

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northie

You know what I think of your hummingbirds.  :lol:  I loved these - so evocative of your summer, perhaps everyone's summer if you are lucky enough to have access to nature unfettered. My favourite? I've just re-read them, trying to decide, and no, I can't single one out. They're all wonderful in their own way.  :yes:

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Parker Owens
1 hour ago, northie said:

You know what I think of your hummingbirds.  :lol:  I loved these - so evocative of your summer, perhaps everyone's summer if you are lucky enough to have access to nature unfettered. My favourite? I've just re-read them, trying to decide, and no, I can't single one out. They're all wonderful in their own way.  :yes:

 

You’re so kind to read and comment on these. I could not choose a favorite either. Rather, they represent one favorite sort of day. Thank you for spending it with me. 

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Headstall

I won't single one out, for there should be no slight on others, but I will say the first one drew me in... at the scuff of my sneakers... put me right there with you. As always, superb observations of nature, my kindred spirit. :)  

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Parker Owens
11 minutes ago, Headstall said:

I won't single one out, for there should be no slight on others, but I will say the first one drew me in... at the scuff of my sneakers... put me right there with you. As always, superb observations of nature, my kindred spirit. :)  

 

Thank you, Gary, for walking this summer day in poetry with me. Spooking the deer in the pre dawn light never fails to startle me as much as it does them. Glad you liked these. 

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CassieQ

I wish I was more of a poetry person to give you a really awesome comment, but I am not, so I just wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed this and how beautiful it is.  I especially like the description of the moons reflection and the tomatoes.

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Parker Owens
7 hours ago, CassieQ said:

I wish I was more of a poetry person to give you a really awesome comment, but I am not, so I just wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed this and how beautiful it is.  I especially like the description of the moons reflection and the tomatoes.

 

Your comment is indeed truly awesome. You made my day. Thank you so much for reading these; the heirloom tomatoes are some of the best treats this time of year has to offer - and the moon on moving water is hypnotic. Again, my thanks. 

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