Hello and Happy Poetry Friday! Be sure to visit Rose at Imagine the Possibilities for Roundup.
I've got a peony poem for your today! (Very fitting, with Roundup at Rose's blog!) At first glance, I thought: I totally should have written after this piece during spring.
But why write a poem about peonies when they are blooming?
It's now, when the stalks are withering, that's got me thinking about what they mean and how flowers have the power to connect us to loved ones long gone...my grandma Dykes particularly comes to mind.
Also, it's a big birthday month in my family: My mother's birthday was earlier this week, and today is our oldest son's 31st birthday. Happy birthday, Daniel! There are others, too...and my father's birthday is the 17th. He would have been 79.
For all those reasons, September feels like the perfect time to write a peony poem. Thanks so much for reading.
fluffy peonies
cozy the last unbroken vase
I remember you
- Irene Latham
p.s. Here are three websites I visited while crafting my poem:
Your haiku says what I feel when I see lilac. They were my mom's favorite. Enjoy all of the birthdays! xo
ReplyDeleteAh - peonies! I just found a poem about them that I jotted down in a collection by Linda Pastan. She was writing about lilacs, but I was so moved by one of her lines that I just had to borrow it to write about peonies. Right then. Right there. Love how you use the word "cozy." Thanks for the links, too.
ReplyDeleteI love peonies -- your poem is so lovely. Happy Birthday to all!
ReplyDeleteHappy birthday to all! Your haiku is lovely, Irene. I never really thought about it, but there are certain flowers that bring my loved ones to mind. My grandmother carried a bouquet of lily of the valley for her wedding to my grandfather. Imagine the fragrance as she walked down the aisle!
ReplyDeleteIrene, the peony is one of my favorite flowers in my garden. I shall think of your haiku next spring when my flowers are puffy.
ReplyDeleteMaybe, I will bring it into the house and have it cozily sitting on my table.
Irene, those flowering blooms do indeed evoke memories of family and friends. The dearly departed are fondly recalled when those seasonal blooms burst upon the scene. I liked the the use of cozy as a verb in your Haiku.
ReplyDeleteTo cozy an unbroken vase— feels intimate. Lovely.
ReplyDeleteThe word, "last" is such a tone setting word. I love it.
ReplyDeleteNodding to all the previous comments! Lovely poem, Irene. Morgan had a bouquet of gorgeous peonies for her wedding, so I always associate them with that happy day, and the preparations for it - visiting the floral arranger's shop, etc. etc. Plus, they're so beautiful in artworks. Happy Birthdays and remembrances to your family this month.... xo
ReplyDeleteOh, gosh. Not just a vase, a presumably intact vase, but that "last unbroken vase." So much in so few words, Irene. Lovely.
ReplyDeleteNice! (My peony poem would be about how desiccated and shriveled up the ones in my yard are after weeks of drought.)
ReplyDelete