Early Fall Along The Shores of Los Osos
At first light, breeze makes the fennel bush shake—
dry sticks except for its still-yellow flowers.
Strolling away, the scent of licorice follows.
There isn’t just one name
for anything—not for the hidden bird
whose call repeats,
not for the pair of long-beaked sandpipers
scurrying across the sand, nor the ducks
swimming in calm obedience to water.
Sunshine doubles every boat upon the water.
And upstairs, the sleeping one reaches
his hand across the width of our bed.
Though my inclination toward these tiny
black shapes and their flush, filled-out sounds
don’t equal his reach,
still I take early morning outside, alone,
for the fading foghorn, sun at my neck,
the lash of far-off waves.
If I don’t tell about the boats,
the dreaming man, fennel in the air, that within
which quivers, where does my life go?
The Garden Thieves
My husband dropped the pit into the compost pile.
Spindly, but determined, by late winter,
a tree no one had planted.
Spring transformed it into an enormous blossom,
scent impossible to ignore. Come early summer,
small green knobs that July turned pink and orange.
Another week till pie.
Early this morning, not just a few,
but the entire tree
empty—all thirty-four ripe peaches
gone. The nearby ground strewn
with pits picked clean.
How stealthily thieves entered the garden
in the night. I can see it now—a family
of raccoons scaling the fence,
balancing on the wispy branches:
their furry bodies, sharp tiny teeth,
juice running down their nimble paws.
Were they too busy with their find,
indulging in delight, usurping hunger,
to even glance at our window?
—both poems from The Knot Untied
About The Author Patrice Vecchione’s newest book is a collection of poems, The Knot Untied. She’s the author of Writing and the Spiritual Life: Finding Your Voice by Looking Within and the editor of many anthologies. Currently, Patrice is working on another nonfiction book, The Alphabet of the Trees: Restore Your Imagination in Nature, due out in the spring of 2015. She teaches creative writing workshops: www.patricevecchione.com.
The Outdoor Poet is edited by Robert Sward, author of numerous books of poetry including, most recently, New and Selected Poems: 1957-2011 (Red Hen Press). He lives on the Westside with his wife, the artist Gloria Alford, and a poodle mix named Cosette. Participation in The Outdoor Poet is by invitation.
RELATED ARTICLES
The Outdoor Poet: Stephen Kessler
The Outdoor Poet: Robert Sward
The Outdoor Poet: George McClendon
Category:
