A Cautionary Poem About April

 

April By Ella Higginson

Pansies, Iowa City, April 15, 2023

Ah, who is this with twinkling feet,
With glad, young eyes and laughter sweet,
    Who tosses back her strong, wild hair,
    And saucy kisses flings to Care,
    The while she laughs at her? Beware—
You who this winsome maiden meet!

She dances on a daisied throne,
About her waist a slender zone
    Of dandelion’s gold; her eyes
    Are softer than the summer skies,
    And blue as violets; and lies
A tearful laughter in her tone.

She reaches dimpled arms and bare;
Her breath is sweet as wild-rose air;
    She sighs, she smiles, she glances down,
    Her brows meet in a sudden frown;
    She laughs; then tears the violets drown—
If you should meet her—ah, beware!

 

It is Earth Day. Normally I would be celebrating by planting some flowers. But it is cold, cloudy and windy. Earlier we had grauple, aka as soft hail, hominy hail or snow pellets, on the deck. Tonight we are supposed to have a hard freeze - so no putting out of tender plants for me!

Instead, I'll remember past Earth Day celebrations - the first one when I helped my son Douglas form an Ecology Club with his school friends. We had work days where we picked up trash along the roads and then rewarded them with a picnic at Jester Park which is where this photo was taken. 

And this one with my daughter-in-law and grandchildren celebrating Earth Day on the farm and the growth of the weeping willow tree we had planted together on a previous Earth Day.

So while I may not be planting anything today, I'm still remembering the significance of that first Earth Day and all the subsequent ones. 💚🌎