Tuesday, April 19, 2011

come and gone like a dream

it's really no surprise
that today
i biked
through the feathered tickle
of gently falling snow

i felt each flake kissing my skin
much like the beginning
of a long goodbye


snow over town (unidentified artist)

blending with the wind,
snow falls;
blending with the snow,
the wind blows.
by the hearth
i stretch out my legs,
idling my time away
confined in this hut.
counting the days,
i find that february, too,
has come and gone
like a dream.

ryokan

18 comments:

Elisabeth said...

Time passes like a dream. We measure it with the seasons. I think this painting is lovely, Steven, especially the falling snow on a blue world.

steven said...

hello elisabeth! it has snowed here on each of the past two days but this morning it has gone. it isn't a surprise to me to have this happen so late in april. it's like reexperiencing the first snow of winter all over again. steven

Jo said...

We celebrated our second son's April birthday one year as snow fell on the tulips and daffodils. We laughed and marveled at the preposterous beauty of it all.

It's a treasured memory, and I think you've used the perfect metaphor...like the kisses of a long goodbye.

Friko said...

O dear, still snow and ice, even if only temporarily.
Come to Shropshire where the sun shines brightly and you can ride your bike in green fields.

Reya Mellicker said...

It is truly incredible that you can experience the snow as a goodbye kiss. Me? I would have been cursing! I am not saintly, oh no.

I salute you.

Valerianna said...

I had an image of a bear with the poem, in his "hut", sitting by the hearth (heart) of the Earth, stretching out his legs and dreaming through the winter....

I like the surprise of snow this time of year, it doesn't stay too long and seeing it weave its carpet amongst the daffodils is quite enchanting. They seem no worse for the wear, though we've gotten only a spot here and there... breathing in spring, breathing out winter..

OceanoAzul.Sonhos said...

steven, I love snowflakes, they have a special magic...make us dream, as this poem. I loved!
oa.s

Pauline said...

the beginning of a long goodbye - that exactly describes this winter's leave-taking!

Love Ryokan's poem...

steven said...

jo the snow came and went but its arrival was so wintry - blasts of air and great swirling vortices of snow. the result was so gentle it was improbable. that's the only word. steven

steven said...

friko - england and my bike are in my long-term line of sight. i have made contact with several organizations who will help me with that. thanks for the encouragement. steven

steven said...

reya - i'm far from saintly myself! i like it that way! howver, i can see goodness in hard to reach places. that's a nice quality isn't it!!! steven

steven said...

valerianna - that image made me laugh for the goodness of it! yep. that's it in a nutshell. in a bear's paws. steven

steven said...

oa.s, yes a special magic. you can find it wherever you look. steven

steven said...

pauline i admire ryokan's poem and poetry also. winter has made a reluctant leaving. almost like a leaving and a returning just to say goodbye one more time, and then one more time . . . again! steven

Tess Kincaid said...

Oh this fickle, tickley spring.

Ruth said...

Feathered tickles and snow kisses as winter fades like a dream. I appreciate your positive words for this lingering season, because I feel that too, even as I long for spring.

steven said...

tess it's an undecided rendering of spring this year that's for sure!! steven

steven said...

ruth - the recession of winter's outer features has been a challenge - biking - and a joy. each little snowfall reminds me of my last christmas in england when i was almost eight years old. the sight of snow was in the realm of magic for me and that's the sensation that engulfs me as these little flakes kiss my face. steven