I have learned that cold has many shades. There is a cold that is crisp & invigorating like first bite of sweet plum or tang of ripe nectarines. There's another that is comfortable like a worn warm jacket when the snowfall has stopped and everything looked like a sculptured garden, scent of fresh pine cones. And there is that cold that is a sharp knife pinching the flesh so tight, I can hardly breath its polar musk. And finally, there is that shade of cold that is deadly as a glacier in the midst of the sea. Yet, I have also witnessed how that huge pile of snow could melt like spring water with the dawning of the sun.
peonies bloom
pink white, a prism of beauty
i can't catch on paper
By Artist: Danny Gregory
Posted for D'verse Poets Pub - A haibun for Gabriella who is hosting the art of Danny Gregory ~ Thanks for the visit ~
Cold comes in many ways, can make one dumb for days or snap one out of a daze
ReplyDeleteAh, this is your first prose I'm reading, Grace. Feeling of fresh air in your creative flow...Esp. love 'scent of fresh pine cones.' and 'prism of beauty' in the poem part...
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful haibun.. the poetic prose has so much sense and progression.. and then the haiku that's put in perfect contrast to the prose.. the polar musk is an expression I particularly like.. Wonderful and meaningful
ReplyDeletethank goodness snow can melt....that those same glaciers that once split our ship...can be healing water....nice haibun....there are def many flavors of cold....
ReplyDeleteI like your multi-faceted exploration of cold. Where we have one adjective, there could easily be several.
ReplyDelete"There is a cold that is crisp & invigorating like first bite of sweet plum or tang of ripe nectarines." This is my favorite kind of cold, and my favorite line in your poem.
Oh, despite the cold weather, as cold as a knife pinching the flesh so tight, it is good to be able to visualize those peonies....a sweet breath of spring!
ReplyDeleteyeah - there even can be a fruity taste in specific sorts of cold... i like how you differentiate them... and those heart piercing colds sometimes stop with a bunch of spring flowers
ReplyDeleteThose peonies must be coming to life in your second kind of cold. I always remark the entrance of the peonies tumbling in the otherwise sculpted garden.
ReplyDeleteMidwest gets each and everyone of those shades of winter... especially this season... nonetheless, there is beauty in all of them. Love how this ends on a warmer note... ha
ReplyDeleteWhat a sweet post. I wish more people who are buried in snow now could read your lovely post and enjoy those peonies. Great writing Grace!
ReplyDeleteI love this haibun - the contrast between the cold and the blossoms is executed perfectly.
ReplyDeleteYes, yes, this is the perfect habit form, & your prose section is so poetic, that with some simple line breaks it could vamp & morph into another poetic form, or run naked & free with the nets down; really enjoyed this piece, thanks.
ReplyDeleteLove the prose at the beginning... there are quiet moments with that snow, but too long where I live
ReplyDeleteLovely Grace, a real sense of the personal comes through in this poem. Well done.
ReplyDeleteI am sending you some sunshine from Florida...lovely.
ReplyDeleteThank you ~ I will take it ~
DeleteThis is just lovely in its simplicity and brevity, Grace. It's in the 80's and 90's here right now. Come on down! Half of Canada is here. :0)
ReplyDeleteI know Victoria, I am envious of your warm weather ~
Delete"I have also witnessed how that huge pile of snow could melt like spring water with the dawning of the sun." ...
ReplyDelete... ya, and totally wash away my 2 only roads to connect with the outside world ... and be totally dependent on the produce of my garden from yester year for 3 weeks ... don't know what I prefer ... snow shoeing like a winter rabbit among poplars, or sitting tight like a porcupine in a willow tree ... anyway ... happy winter ... Love, cat.
This is lovely, Grace. That is a great play of prism and prison that works well with the catching. Thanks! k. (Manicddaily)
ReplyDeleteThis is a timely piece as the cold rushes over so many areas. I for one am glad the cold will pass and snow will melt. This is my favorite line it speaks volumes.
ReplyDeletesnow could melt like spring water with the dawning of the sun.
A wonderful haibun. And I especially liked the end of the prose and the haiku.
ReplyDelete-HA
Shades of cold is a reality very well captured here Grace! Great haibun!
ReplyDeleteHank
Looking forward to peonies after the "pinching" cold...i like the contrast you richly captured with prose and haiku.
ReplyDeletewow...beautiful.....and the subtle contrast of the prose and the poem.....great!!
ReplyDeleteGrace I have cold down to three categories, all colorless. 1 Vicodin, 2 Vicodin, 3 Vicodin +1 Valium.
ReplyDeleteIt is a true talent to capture nature honest color and hold it in one place forever. Love the haibun.
Love that picture. I love the very beginning of winter simply because it means a change is comin' but when the cold sets in, I'm miserable. Thank you for sharing! Have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed all the various layers of cold that you described so warmly in your prose. A lovely haiku to top it off.
ReplyDeleteBeautifully reflective haibun ,Grace. I'll take that first kind of cold--but oh it is so good when the latter melts. Well told!
ReplyDeleteA lovely haibun - nuanced on so many levels.
ReplyDeleteYou described the different shades of cold perfectly! I used to not like the cold too much, but my sweet husband taught me to love it :)
ReplyDeleteBoy, aren't you a keen observant. I've just realized that cold has shades indeed. Good point!
ReplyDeleteI have always found beauty in the cold...I loved this :)
ReplyDeletereally strong piece ~
ReplyDelete