Breathe it in

Away from the traffic’s endless rumble

I walk up a country road

Flanked on each side by breathing ditches

Sticky bud trees

Quiet teachers of time.

Invisible birds sing out of somewhere

I slow my pace on this road

Relishing sounds; boots in the mud

Squelching footsteps

Gravel and moss.

Candyfloss clouds, sunshine, rain shadows

Flowers at the side of the road

A honeybee moves from pale yellow petals

Tasting the nectar

Of nature’s life force.

Picking nettles, I stop to ponder

How medicine grows in these fields

A ladybird pauses; blades of grass quiver

As all living things

Call out to Spring.

…………………………………………………………

Kathryn Mary Crowley