Just yesterday
the ornamental pear tree outside my office
window flaunted color:
leaves,
yellow oxide,
cadmium orange
and raw sienna—
clinged tenaciously—
until wind-violence
whipped in fury,
promised rain and warned
the Truckee would defy
her boundaries, swell to rape
the shores, invade the town
and neighborhoods.
On the cul-de-sac
behind my kitchen window,
a pile of sandbags
in a neighbor’s driveway
shrugs in disappointment,
uneeded.
For my part,
I count lonely
fruit, hanging from bare branches,
study black clouds
to the west,
write poetry.
Linked to dVerse Open Link Night, where Natasha is our hostess for the evening. Hope you will drop in, bring a poem of your own and enjoy the work of others.
We live a block from the Truckee and were fortunate to make it through a rough weekend of flood warnings. The winds did more damage than the rain.
On a side note, I’ve been trying to update my gravatar and it just isn’t working. So if you see a black square, it’s not about my mood!
Victoria C. Slotto, Author 
Am enjoying your new theme. Very nice. 🙂
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the change of seasons always promised much in terms of angst, grist, wonderings – having finally spent a few falls and winters and springs (notice i left off summer 😉 ) away from texas, i’ve had the pleasure of having some of those promises filled – your piece is a lovely example of what i had missed, and i sense it much in your words 😉 thanks so much victoria, & great new pic! 😉
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what a lovely new avatar…smiles
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*hug* Count your blessings and see the little beauties that surround you. Wonderful work and I’m glad the sandbags were unused.
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In the face of pending danger, you choose to write.
What else would a writer do?
Loved it.
Tim
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the sand bags may have sighed in disappointment, but I’d guess your neighbors sighed in relief. love the opening description of the tree.
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Wind, weather, rivers, and oceans are the stuff of metaphors, and poetry, for you and me is the stuff of life. You merge them so beautifully here. Thank you.
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The beginning was so vivid in my mind that it led me along through this sad . but, well written write.
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Exceptional observations here and love the way you arranged them here, really building us up for the outstanding final lines. Thanks
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Ah, they flooded into your poetry, did the river and the pear, and you gave us savory details too.
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ah, this is wonderful. I feel I am with you there, watching, feeling, and writing poetry.
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Oh wow, this was really good.
“For my part,
I count lonely
fruit, hanging from bare branches,
study black clouds
to the west,
write poetry.”
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i just love the counting lonely fruits…sounds so meditative in the face of a possible storm…can’t wait to see the new gravatar…smiles
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excellent imagery. i love how you describe the pear tree in all her autumn glory.
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We’ve had deep waters here, but not too bad really and probably not as bad as where you are. Lovely poem and BTW – I’ve had some awful times with Gravatar. Good luck! Lovely new theme.
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beautiful…amazing that some fruit remained.
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Love the counting fruit image in here…Nice, tight images. Really liked this.
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I love the attention to the tree and its fruit with wind swirling and storms in the area, and the poet looks at the fruited tree. Perfect.
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I feel sad for the tree…beautiful.
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I can picture the lonely fruit hanging outside the window ~ Thankfully our weather has been warmer than colder, rain but no floods ~
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Having been through several hurricanes I can relate to your environment. My pear tree lost all it’s leaves during H.Isaac in late August, then a week or so later put out blooms. Now it’s completely green as though it’s April instead of December! Nature is weird.
This is a wonderful write, you take the reader right there.
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Such a storm front I would hope to avoid, you sure brought it to life and a whole lot more,nicely done!
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What a sight sandbags shrugging in disappointment but better to be safe than sorry as they say… These quick storms can whip up a fury, hope your trees can hang on to their fruit, and the storms die down.
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whew…i would hope the storm and flood not come…and i feel sad for the tree . best to prepare as we can but then what can we do but watch and record….smiles…nice verse ma’am…
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I am thinking the same way today–about how my grape vine is shivering out there with a new storm coming in–Beautiful write!
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There have been so many floods – Europe, Asia, USA this year. Is this the future? I love your scene setting, but reckon the leaves clung!
There was one solitary leaf clinging to our liquidambar for weeks, but it was gone when I got home yesterday, leaving only a wren’s nest perched up high.
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Oh, dear, I didn’t realize that you lived so close to the Truckee River… it is on the news as you can imagine every day. Have been keeping, along with others at the church the people in your area in our thoughts and prayers as we know the wind can do amazing damage as can the waters.
Thanks for sharing your poem…as sad as it is to see nature and peoples lives changed so drastically…writers write and poets write poems no matter what the weather.
Will continue to try and keep track of the Truckee River and keep you and your neighbors in my thoughts and prayers.
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