Best Marsh Poems

I don't need mawkish photographs to see
the drowning rowboat tethered to the dock,
a withered seahorse clinging to debris
as umber water seeps through feeble caulk.

The cord grass will have grown up through the planks
to marry splinters teeming on the pier,
putrescent pillars tilted by the banks;
a pallid...

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cattails winnow-
                   mirth abandons Red Winged Blackbirds





-inspired by Brian Strand's poetry...

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Out of the vast marsh
plaintive grey curlew calling -
my sister scolding me....

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Waking up, I was blinded by the radiant, yellow sun rays;
I witnessed with awe a splendid sunrise
rising over a field of marsh marigolds... 
more astonished than a true believer, I praised Him twice!...

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marsh
hear the rattle of the clapper rail
buffer of strong seas
grassy refuge of the great egret
wetlands...

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Wind kisses marsh trees
Cattail fairies dance on winds
Fly to find new home.

 
(January 12, 2011  Wausau, Wisconsin)

(c) Copyright 2011 by Christine A Kysely, All Rights Reserved,...

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wetlands contains life
tiny creatures scurry around
hawks circle overhead...

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I sit in my car on an old bridge painted white.
the stream passes under as I wait for the light 

an old turtle suns itself on a rock near the bank	
this turtle is my touchstone if I may be so frank

when ever I cross this...

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There's a party down at the marsh,
amongst all the wild amphibians,
Theresa toad croaking alongside her tadpoles,
all one thousand and one of them,

Carla the crayfish catering all the food,
all of the partygoers in a festive mood,
the dragonflies doing their aerial light show,
getting much applause, they take...

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In the knife-edged saw grass
a fawn high-steps behind
his mother's tail
With an eerie whoop,
a rusty- winged chicken
warns them away from
his purloined roost
Renegade rooster on the lamb,
flapping his wings until feathers
fly like snowflakes - he caroms
from branch to bush
His chicken brain unaware
that deer do not climb trees
When...

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Cattails, sedges, papyrus,  sawgrass
Fish waterfowl soundless salamanders
In soft wet interface of water and earth
      Reclines the orbit of Marsh...

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My parents moved recently–
a nice place, marsh view,
plenty of trees and walking trails
a nice big kitchen for Scottish breakfasts.
Their deck upstairs looks out 
on the marsh water shining in the sun.
The aquatic landscape broken only
by the stilted legs of hungry herons.
The floorboards no longer creak
beneath...

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Only the cold crunching
of the fresh snow bunching,
and the tired leather boots
as I take that first step

Can be heard right here
by no other frozen ear,
for away I rushed off
to find silence instead

And all that is harsh
exists not on this marsh,
where the only prying eyes
belong to...

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Pussy Willows

Among the wild cattails marsh,
Wetlands mire and morass harsh,
Pussy Willow buds appear
In warm grey fur chase off winter’s jeers.

Close to streams they sink deep roots
Laps up milk of streamlet’s fruits
Vernal purr of perfection
Sacred siren of Resurrection.

2-8-22
Contest: A Poem Crafted In the Various Lind30 by...

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Sluggish swamp water seeps through cypress knee
Looking for the reclusive crocodiles now infesting,
Our air boat skims along the edge of Okeefenochee
Where we spy a prehistoric-like alligator ingesting
What appears to be an unwary otter or fox squirrel
Our guide points out a log laden with sunning turtles
With...

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