Four Poems by Elaine Reardon

In These Hard Times

 

Spring thaw still shepherds in violets,

dandelions, and poke. Rabbit

and fox begin their dance.

 

Warm meadows fill—

sun-softened berries, wild onions–

and young turkeys.

 

Goldthread, skullcap,

mushrooms, Witch

Hazel grow for seekers

in the wild wood.

 

Pear and pawpaw,

pine needle and mint,

fragrant nourishment

when autumn sets in.

 

Gather apples when nights grow

cold, pull out the root crops, all before

hoarfrost cracks beneath your boot

in pale morning light.

 

 

Provence of Winter

 

Pine and oak frozen in place

no branches murmur movement

 

silent birds search for

bits of nourishment

 

water pools turned to ice

hollowed snow deer bed

 

porcupine track and fox

lead to an empty garden

 

yesterday at forest edge

I offered carrot scrappings

 

and broccoli stalks

gone now     no trace

 

still more snow falls

the provence of winter

 

fenceposts transmuted to alabaster,

the car now a snowy mound

 

indoors warmth of fire

hiss and steam of wood

 

 

Guenevere Remembers Long After

 

Lady I was angry for so long

I blamed you

turned from you

were you alone then too

 

After the fall

where did you go

when I lay in the ground

when he wept tears into the soil

where were you then

 

I no longer remember his face

but I remember his gaze

blazing through me

it shocka me still

 

I remember not wanting

anything at all

save him— no matter the cost

Lady I still love in the midst of it all

 

 

Guenevere To Her Teacher, Long After

 

You were mother and teacher to me

we floated down hidden ways

through reeds and mist together

how can I unknot what has been tied so well

you asked too much of me.

 

Did you know we would love too well

did you know I would love though time

did you train me for this

such bitter leavings—

meagre fragments of hope

 

These two Guenevere poems were first published in my chapbook, The Heart is a Nursery For Hope, 2016, Flutter Press. I have all rights to them.

Elaine Reardon is a poet, educator, and herbalist who lives deep in a forest in Western Massachusetts. Her first chapbook, The Heart is a Nursery For Hope, won first honors from Flutter Press in 2016. Her second chapbook, Look Behind You, was published by Flutter Press in late 2019. Most recently Elaine’s poetry and essays have been published by Pensive Journal, The Wild Word, Prospectus Literary, Syncopated Journal, and several anthologies.     http://elainereardon.wordpress.co