Wild Weather

painting by Jeanette Prout

wild weather
grey puddles of slush
where the road was—
all our tomorrows
blown out to sea

tanka by Julie Thorndyke

A favourite from Eucalypt

when it all seems
simply too much to bear –
the cool blue ocean
edged with lapis-lazuli,
velvet fingers of white foam

— Julie Thorndyke

Eucalypt Issue 16, 2014

Read an appraisal of this poem by Neal Whitman

Equinox

autumn breezes
through my open window
another day of hoping

a still evening—
teenagers out, we decide
on skinny-dipping

overnight,
these first golden stars
fallen to the gutter

our unmade bed
coiled with serpents
of regret

morning birdsong—
light creeps through
grey foliage

enamelled flowers
pinned to black velvet—
her long ago spring

lifting cloud
lit from beneath
by a tangerine sun

Julie Thorndyke

blue shadows ache
with ancient memory beyond this
threshold of longing—
heavy with destiny, waiting
for the traveller to arrive

have you not learned
tomorrow comes, regardless?
lie with me, my love
and dream
on this shared pillow

more fragrant
than spring flowers, the scent
of my lover’s arms—
lingering this morning
in a mist of autumn dreams

for a moment,
a snatch of song
I almost remember…
somewhere, in my memory
also the press of your skin