Promise of Rain

He sows fine seeds upon the earth
But no wheat grows, there is a dearth
Of rainfall

The sun beats down upon his field
The soil bakes hard, there is no yield
Still rainless

He hopes for wind and begs for clouds
He whispers soft, he prays aloud
for raindrops

He lies prostrate, drowning in fears
A ghostly form cries saltless tears
The rainsprite

Showers and sunlight join as one
The heavens shimmer, having fun
A rainbow

It’s Meeting the Bar time over at dVerse Poets Pub, and Laura, our congenial host, has asked us to create a Compound Word Verse of five stanzas, three lines in each, with the syllable format 8/8/3 and rhyming pattern a/a/b. The final line must end with the required compound word that begins, or ends, with the stem word.

Limitation can often create freedom as our poetic and creative minds no longer need to expand into the freedom of the form, but in the story itself. I had no idea I was going to write a poem about a farmer desperate for rain – although given the drought and constant high temperatures we have had in Europe, this probably isn’t surprising.

If you fancy trying your hand at this Compound Word Verse form, why not join us? It’s fun, creative and you can read lots of other contributors’ poems into the bargain!

Obsidian Nights

wave your chill sceptre
Queen December
blow snowflake kisses
from your lips tinged blue
beckon the jester
to do your will
as he skates on thin ice
dancing with glacial glee
twirling, skirling
his frost-rimed mirth
bestowing fairy dust
bejewelling all
with tinkling laughter
and a wicked arctic glare

the January King
rises to his queen’s challenge
commanding freezing fog
lurking in valleys
stunning streams into silence
babbling brooks made mute
meandering mists muffle
icicles spear the air
dagger-sharp
dangling from branches
scintillating in sunlight
skewering the shadows
until they surrender
s--h--a--t--t--e--r--i--n--g
to smithereens

Winter emits a chilling sigh
frost fairies dance in the sparkling light
a hint, a tracing, an ethereal lacing
of spiderweb chandeliers
swaying
as robins flit
from branch to icing sugar branch
the holly bush shivering
its crown of thorns
bejewelled with blood berries
encrusted with crystal halos
glistening

the Frost Queen and Ice King
make all this so
as obsidian nights shimmer
and the Wolf Moon howls
reflected in glass-topped lakes
sliding and shivering
quivering
spectral stars pierce the sky
celestial bodies tremble and twinkle
as we lock all doors
snapping them shut
our breath misting windows
warm duelling with chill
in an involuntary, gasping protest
against Jack Frost’s
impromptu ingress

Hot on the heels of Quadrille Monday, over at dVerse Poets Pub, today is dVerse Poetics day, where Lisa invites us to write poetry of any sort, inspired by the weather.

I am truly fed up of the drought we’re having, the high temperatures day and night, the wildfires – everything to do with this long, parched summer. It worries me greatly. So, I decided to take comfort from the thought of colder, more refreshing weather and imagine the joy of folk tales, fairy tales, nursery rhymes and similar.

I hope you enjoy it, and, if you feel inspired to take part, do please join us. Head on over to Lisa’s post (linked above) follow the steps to share your poem, join us and read some other lovely poems as well!

The darkling days – dVerse Open Link Night

image

Many mourn the shortening days

the dark of the morning

and the gloom of the night.

Yet I revel in the coming home to lights on,

to big, fluffy slippers,

to curling up in the warmth

as the wind rattles window panes,

as fog seeps into every nook and cranny

and the rain lashes and batters the

naked trees outside.

I hibernate under the duvet,

snuggle into my pillows

hug my hot water bottle to my chest

and sigh, cosseted, safe indoors.

Autumn, do your worst.

Mittens are my friend.


It’s Thursday, and that means Open Link Night over on dVerse, where Bjorn, our friendly Swedish barkeep for tonight (thank you Bjorn) congenially invites us to share any poem we wish.

I was going to repost an old poem, but then decided to write on Autumn, which is really my favourite season of the year. I love lying in bed at night, cozy and warm, whilst the weather rages outside!

Please do take part, or if not, just come along and enjoy what our poetic community has shared!