Thursday, December 17, 2015

Eternal summer


Credit:   Kathy Klein


we tear off 
banana leaf from the tree
it is a giant umbrella
plane
ship
stripping strand
by strand, we form a soft ball
ring
watch
flower
anything we fancy-
the tropical sun colors
our skin to healthy tan
as we run around the park
smelling of guava and
sugar-fried sweet potatoes
time flits 
slow as afternoon river
bellyful as ripe papaya
on field of summer red daisies


Posted for D'verse Poets Pub - Hosted by Bjorn Rudberg on our last prompt for 2015 ~ I recall my carefree growing up years in my native land, Philippines ~  
Happy Holidays ~   Thanks for the visit ~

30 comments:

  1. A great moment to recall by the sounds of it indeed. Some big leaves they must have been

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ah. this is just great Grace... I can feel the smell of Guava and how the sun burns my skin.. nothing's better than the carefree days of childhood... (though I do remember the chill of winter days).

    ReplyDelete
  3. Excellent stream & recall, so very vivid, wonderful sense of place; & as a flow of consciousness, it comes out very personal, authentic, you.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I like this, the memories, the heat, the unrestrained childhood fun - slow as afternoon river - I like that line muchly - and the Southerner in me loves the thoughts of those sugar fried sweet potatoes. A nice warm poem on this cold rainy day.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Absolutely breathtaking...!! So beautifully done :D

    ReplyDelete
  6. How beautiful and delicious.

    ReplyDelete
  7. We did that with banana leaves when I was growing up too. They're so big, your imagination can go wild. I enjoyed this sense-filled tale of a time growing up in the Philippines, Grace.

    ReplyDelete
  8. your thoughts are so vivid I feel I can touch, taste, smell what you did.

    ReplyDelete
  9. It's kind of cool the way YOU take these prompts in absolutely your own direction Grace. Always something between realism and surreal. Always worth the read.

    ReplyDelete
  10. You took me on a vacation to somewhere I have never been. So exotic.

    ReplyDelete
  11. It sounds like a very wonderful time, Grace! Enjoyed your nostalgic write. Merry Christmas to you...and hope you have a good new year too.

    ReplyDelete
  12. We're in the middle of summer here so it was very easy to slip into the atmosphere of your poem. I'm going for a walk to pick avocado pears straight after this.

    ReplyDelete
  13. This is a yummy poem. Reminded me of using a banana leaf as sunshade then umbrella - very effective as both.

    ReplyDelete
  14. You created such a good sense of place in this, Grace. Reminded me of a vacation in Hawaii when I was a teen...when it was still pristine and un-touristy. And also, how when we were young we "created" our own toys from whatever was around...and I have the scars to prove it!

    ReplyDelete
  15. "watch / flower / anything we fancy"...this is a fairy tale moment of a distant time and land...so beautifully sketched Grace...Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year :)

    ReplyDelete
  16. A wonderful flow and magic about this poem. Love it.

    ReplyDelete
  17. What i Love about NatUre
    unadulteRaTinG
    by human
    hands iS
    iT is trUly
    free verse
    @heARt
    and so
    iS God..
    only humans
    make life anything
    else than free verse
    with science
    minds.. as
    sure i livedevil
    that human
    evilive trap
    before..
    sMiLes.. wInks..
    and yes.. i see now
    thAT free verse heRe
    of NaTure iN yoUr
    eYes.. hear..:)

    ReplyDelete
  18. What a gorgeous piece. Thanks.

    Greetings from London.

    ReplyDelete
  19. You've transported me to another time and place in this one; such vivid and tangible images of that sunny tropic, and the free form of the piece only bolsters that! great write

    ReplyDelete
  20. I love this! Just like Ostensible Truth says - you instantly took me to another place, out of the grey and cold we have in Germany today, into the sun and carefree being of a child. It's like a short vacation from everything, a meditation to refill the tanks. I'm in awe of your talent!
    Have a wonderful week, Grace.
    Lots of big hugs to you,
    Beate

    ReplyDelete
  21. Sounds like a wonderful place. Sometimes I think I wouldn't mind eternal summer! Happy 2016 to you, Grace!

    ReplyDelete
  22. Love it. (Sweet potatoes too.)

    Happy New Year :))

    ReplyDelete
  23. Wonderful....felt like I watched you running around the park
    smelling of guava and
    sugar-fried sweet potatoes...... :-)

    ReplyDelete
  24. Wonderful!! The fragrance of guava and
    sugar-fried sweet potatoes were here.... :-)

    ReplyDelete
  25. Such bright colors and rich words on a cold and dreary day. Thanks for sharing. Happy New Year!

    ReplyDelete
  26. A wonderful capture of movement and senses. A treat to read!

    ReplyDelete
  27. you've carved deep here. I'm glad to see you visit your bedrock ~

    ReplyDelete

I try my best to reciprocate comments and visits.
I allow anonymous comments if you have difficulty posting them. Thank you & have a good day!!!