nature poems

Ode to Butterfly

by

butterflyhawthorn1

When I was a child, my mother went to college and majored in education. She was given an assignment to create two children’s books. One of those books was about me and my love of butterflies, which continues to this day. These amazing insects go through such a transformation in their life cycle and become the beautiful creatures that bring delight to our lives.

This spring morning our yard was filled with butterflies grazing on the Washington hawthorn trees, and I captured this photo of one of them, which in turn inspired the following ode.

Wingèd I arise from my retreat;
Into newfound freedom now I fly.
I shall drink the nectar wild and sweet
And dance beneath boundless blue of sky.

Oh, wondrous world soaked in solar light,
Let me bathe in those beams and climb so high,
For once I crawled and now am given flight
So shall I kiss the ground below good-bye.

On lilting winds to waft until twilight,
To flutter amid air’s filmy caress,
To sup upon the sunshine of delight;
With transformation all the world to bless.

Wherever I go spirits soon shall rise
And springtime glories only multiply.
So shall I navigate the silken skies,
For I am the one known as butterfly.

© 2016 L. Diana Henderson

My novel, Grandfather Poplar, is available on Amazon.com.

Like on Facebook.

Follow on Twitter at https://twitter.com/GrandPop333 (@GrandPop333).

Magenta Rays

by

magentasunlightbrook

Magenta rays filtered through the trees
Reflect in your waters of pure peace;
Here in the woodland I swim the seas
Of earthly wonders that never cease.
Pines above supply a silken screen
For each ray that wafts into this dream;
Its solar song lighting your sweet green
In soft hues that glimmer in your stream.
Here I live in your serenity
Bathed in your soundless, soothing light;
Here I claim my true identity
In this place that beckons me to flight.
All illusion now I leave behind;
Each step into your depths the world unwinds.
Here in your embrace no more confined,
Spirit merges with my heart and mind.
And I am one with you beyond time
In this paradise, this sacred shrine,
Among clouds and trees and Earth sublime,
As light and love and grace forever shine.

© 2016 L. Diana Henderson
Grandfather Poplar, the novel, is on sale at http://bit.ly/GrandfatherP.
Follow on Twitter at twitter.com/GrandPop333.
Like us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/GrandfatherPoplar/.

Autumn

by

dhautumnAutumn has been my favorite season for as long as I can remember. I wrote this light-hearted poem about autumn many years ago. I hope you enjoy it!

When the garden spider weaves its silken strands
And Jack Frost’s icy fingers touch leaf and land,
I dance in upon the breath of the North Wind,
And on all of Nature’s creatures I descend
Offering the gifts that only Autumn brings —
Fairer by far than all the rites of Spring.
No longer the days of toil and sowing seeds
But time to harvest the fruits of all these deeds.
The heat of summer gives way to gentler days
And crisp nights beneath a sparkling Milky Way.
A time for romance under the harvest moon,
To listen, to dance once more to Nature’s tune.
And each sunrise brings a world of brightest hues,
A landscape of brilliant colors to peruse,
A dreamlike scene caressed by gossamer threads,
A kiss of frost like dewdrops on spiders’ webs.
Just around the corner, winter lies in wait,
But woo me well and this year it may be late!

©  1997 L. D. Henderson

Solemn Shades of Winter

by

creek12302015Solemn shades of winter
Bathe the land in stillness;
Trees bare of verdant growth
Reveal gray silhouettes against clouded sky.
Deep within Grandmother Earth
Warmth awaits rediscovery,
But for now the time to slumber,
To release into winter’s bosom
And go inside into the Silence.
Wonders lie within the dream state
Beneath the surface of what we see.
What visions may unfurl as we sleep,
Regenerating the creative genesis
To unmask a new paradigm,
A golden age of Light,
That lies beyond the murkiness of a troubled world.
So in the quiet of the turning year
May we dream together
A planet re-birthed into peace.

Sunset on the Water

by

lakesunset2

Silhouetted against the last silken stream of sunlit sky,
You stand quietly absorbing those final rays
As stillness overtakes your inner senses
In the prelude to the hush of nightfall.
A golden glimmer reflecting on seamless water
Entreats you to call back the sunlight
So that once again it might melt into your branches
And remind you of the far-off spring
When your heart’s blood begins to rise anew
In the time of the greening.
So you cry out to the setting sun lowering its head
Behind your brothers across the lake,
“Linger just a while with me,
And let the shine of your gold lift me
Once again skyward.”
But swiftly the peace settles into your psyche
And the comfort of the sweet Earth beckons you inward
Into the dreamless sleep of trees.

© 2016 L. D. Henderson