Geese flap their wings in time
With the pulse of autumn.
The setting sun casts itself up one last time,
Stroking the bellies of these quiet,
Distant birds in a fleeting moment.
I feel that touch, too,
And I imagine it as a kind of love.
It is a farewell I have watched a thousand times,
Always confident I will watch it a thousand more.
This time, I watch as I lie on a blanket in grass
Alongside the river where
I have watched these geese feed
On warmer days.
They mark time for me in heaven and on earth.
I feel the pulse of their movement
Throbbing in my own veins
And I say good-bye. I sleep well.
I know I will hear them return.
I will be here. I will not be alone.
One Single Impression
31 Comments
Hi Sandy, this is great. I was there but have not been so intensely involved with these departing friends before.
ReplyDeleteAn aside, down here the geese leave in the spring and head up your way to spend their summer.
..
I so related to the this beautiful poem. I love all your poetry.
ReplyDeleteFleeting moments as measured by Natures clock-superb! I enjoy watching these large migrations
ReplyDeletesouth-what a spectacle.
Thank you for sharing this.
Hi Sandy--
ReplyDeleteI too mark the season with the movement and sound of the Canadian Geese that live here. I always have done so...as a child in upstate Pennsylvania their migrations were prominent markers of the passage of time. Having them land in our cornfields was a harbinger of both spring and winter!
Thank you for this thing of beauty...
we were not meant to be alone. nice message.
ReplyDeleteReally splendid poem, Sandy. I enjoy it a lot.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if you create poems as improvisations or you build them in a long time (days or weeks).
Lovely reflective poem! I am not really tuned to any particular bird migrations here in Australia, so, for me, it is particularly interesting how it is/can be in other countries!
ReplyDeleteIt is the same time of year here, on the other side of the ocean.
ReplyDeleteI am not sure what nationality these geese are and I doubt they were ever in Canada, but I think they are called Canadian geese. We also have Nile Geese which never were in Egypt in their life.
You create a sense of oneness in your poetry that is very nice indeed!
ReplyDeleteAn intuitive insight into the cycles of life - its continuance.
ReplyDeleteExcellent.
Lovely feel to this poem.
ReplyDeleteYou put light in your poetry as beautifully as you find it in your photography: I love that!
ReplyDeleteWhen I was growing up, the geese would fly over twice a year, and that distant echoy haunting sound of them calling each other is the most beautiful memory to me now: my 'grown-up' house is out of their way I suppose. You put a smile on my face this morning, remembering them.
This is just perfect, Sandy! I just bid my Canadian Geese farewell, too. They left, with their goslings, about 2 weeks ago. It was a bittersweet moment for me. The goslings survived to migrate this year! I will miss them, and now look forward to their return in the spring!
ReplyDeleteI can picture it all...
ReplyDeleteThanks for this.
temporal
I like the balance -- going but returning, fleeting yet constant as the seasons.
ReplyDeleteThis is so thoughtful, Sandy!
ReplyDeleteFleeting but with promise of return gives hope.
ReplyDeletelovely, very still. that's something I miss terribly living in Wales, the sound and sight of greese going south over Ohio.
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful interpretation of this prompt Sandy! I am a big fan of geese; I think they have so much to teach us about nuturing, fortitude, determination....
ReplyDeletewww.mypoeticpath.wordpress.com
.."going but returning, fleeting yet constant as the seasons"_
ReplyDelete-"An intuitive insight into the cycles of life"-and the romanticism in nature..a pretty poem..many thanks..
Beautiful poem! I love the geese this time of year and you have captured their fall flight well.
ReplyDeletewhat an amazing poet and storyteller and photgrapher you are my dear. I hope to sit on that blanket and watch the geese return in the spring with you!
ReplyDeletethis is such a 'sunday afternoon' poem...i was right there with you on the grassy bank...i could hear their honking!
ReplyDeleteHave I mentioned lately how much I love coming here? Your posts can challenge or comfort; always touch my heart and my senses. This is no exception; it's magical -! Thanks Sandy.
ReplyDeleteThese are such beautiful words. You sure have a wonderful talent for writing. You're post are always so inspiring and up lifting to read. Thanks so much.
ReplyDeleteSo very reflective and seasoned. Beautifully done!
ReplyDeleteThis poem is so very visual. I could see the mellowed setting sun stroking the geese-- what an amazing picture.
ReplyDeleteYou write this almost like a prayer. Very moving.
ReplyDeleteOh, to be "always confident I will watch it a thousand more." This is lovely, all of it, but that line in particular moves me.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful thoughts about those fleetings moments that always come back again...
ReplyDeleteVery nice. I love the image of wild geese. It always carries my heart away to someplace wild and free. Your poem carried me away today also. I like how you compare the sunlight stroking the bellies of the geese to the touch of love. I'm glad you are not alone.
ReplyDeleteThanks for being here.