healingwords: poetry for the soul

The last days of  June have come with a swift and harsh reminder of summer heat and with it the return of evening life. School is finished, the municipal pool is open, the village is filling with holiday makers. The streets hum with sound as doors are opened to let in the cool night air. We sleep through the hot afternoons and stay up late as the sun goes down and the stars come out.  Photo of the sky over Parcent by Chris Knight NIGHT FALL So hot by day we live by night, when the breeze fans the sky, rustling through tree trimmed valleys scuttling dried riverbeds to the sea. Cooling now the village breathes, echoes of children freed from school, dogs barking their ‘campo’ song, doves cooing as they fly to roost. High above street life I watch as the sun releases its closing rays, soft pinks glazing the inkiness, flushing purple the deepening blue. Drifting dusk bugs bestow an evening feast for darting swifts, swooping close...

This morning I enjoyed a walk in the Pego marshes. The river and canals were flowing over the paths into the rice fields and herons and egrets flew overhead. On my return I wrote these two short poems, in acrostic and tanka form for Wendy Pratt's online poetry course. If you are interested in improving your writing I recommend Wendy who is an inspiring tutor, her web page is below.  https://wendyprattpoetry.wordpress.com/readings-courses-events-stuff/ HERON Hidden in emerald rushes Elegant neck stretched skywards Reed stick legs balanced in mud slick Opal wings spread like silk fans rising Noiseless into the cloudless blue. RIO SALINAR     The river ebb slows as it winds through bulrushes, reflecting pea greens, as exploding pepper down drifts over paddies of rice. © 2019 Jacqueline Knight Cotterill.  All rights reserved.  

This evening I ended 12 years of service as a Councillor in my village, walking away from the Town Hall with the love and appreciation of fellow Councillors and work companions who have become good friends.  We have shared times of great difficulty and celebrated great achievements and I have learned the true meaning of friendship and the value of working for your community and standing up for your rights and beliefs. I would like to thank all who have joined me in this journey. This poem is a reflection on ending one part of my life and looking forward to the next.  AS ONE DOOR CLOSES I walk a little lighter,  the key jangling large between house and car,  used one last time to close the wooden doors  on my public duty. A score of years  marked time  as  my children  grew to adults,  raised on commitment, campaigners all,  noble in their fight. I too grew;  from a fearful start,...