The writing prompt this week at One Single Impression is REST, submitted by The Manic Gardener.
I suppose I can blame the Stream of Consciousness for taking me from REST to RELAX, which brings me to SUMMER, a season which I find particularly relaxing. Summer in the Pacific Northwest will be the subject of my poem.
I’m trying a new poetic form this week – Sestina – about which I’m inordinately excited! Using this form reminds me of playing Scrabble and Sudoko. If you’re interested, here is the link to the Wikipedia article about Sestina, and how to Do It Yourself. If any Sestina experts out there want to set me straight on any poetic faux pas I may have committed, please speak out!
With that introduction, I am pleased to present
A TRIBUTE TO SUMMER IN THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST: A SUMMER SESTINA
After the cold drizzle of winter, I desire summer
When spring foliage deepens to a darker shade of green
And the beauty and buzz of nature bids me relax.
Sweater, jacket and scarf can finally be shed in all this warmth.
Encouraged by the lovely weather, I want to play
Even if that occasionally means playing in the rain.
In the Pacific Northwest, though, we don’t mind rain;
Yes, we have overcast days and drizzles, even in the summer.
Best of all though are blue-sky days, when billowing clouds play
Across the sky, pulling their shadows along the green
Earth beneath them. “Partially cloudy” warmth
With a light breeze can provide the best setting to relax.
During these lazy days, a park is often where we relax
With a covered shelter (Just in case there’s rain.).
For barbecued burgers with the fixin’s you don’t need warmth,
Though warmth helps; after all, it IS summer!
Kick the soccer ball; toss the Frisbee across the grassy green;
Put up the volleyball net. It’s time to play!
There’s more to do during these summer days than play;
Until the chores are done, it’s difficult to relax.
(I mean chores dealing with the super-abundance of green.)
The grass and the weeds grow faster with this rain.
The rototiller, the mower and the weed eater make the sounds of summer.
This necessary work is made more pleasant by the season’s warmth.
When our children were small, summer had a special warmth,
The warmth of my enjoyment as I watched them play
In their bush-clump forts, where they adventured through the days of summer.
As a special treat, I’d serve them lunch outside, the routine relaxed.
Up on the porch they would shelter, when it rained,
Which it sometimes did in their playroom green.
During summer – this season sometimes balmy, but always green –
I find it difficult to remember chill and ice. A deep warmth
Saturates my being, body and soul; I don’t dread the rain.
Being accustomed to this climate, we continue to play
And work during the inevitable drizzle. “Relax!”
We tell new-comers: “This is a Pacific Northwest summer.”
A summer season here, with the sun shining through green
Leaves, is a time to relax, in appreciation of long-absent warmth,
A time to continue with our work and play, even in times of rain.
