The Snowflake Chronicles

National Poetry Month 2013

Day 1: Monday, April 1, 2013
Kamál (Perfection), 11 Bahá (Splendor), 170 BE

I am here to wish
You Happy April Fool's Day,
Please make someone laugh.

Day 2: Tuesday, April 2, 2013
Fiḍál (Grace), 12 Bahá (Splendor), 170 BE

wind in the olives
a bird flying overhead
a beautiful day

Day 3: Wednesday, April 3, 2013
‘Idál (Justice), 14 Bahá (Splendor), 170 BE

A month to immerse in poetry;
Painting pictures in stanzas and lines;
Remembering my favorite childhood rhymes;
Inscribing sonnets of love, while
Listening to the voice of my muse.

Day 4: Thursday, April 4, 2013
Istijlál (Majesty), 15 Bahá (Splendor), 170 BE

charcoal evening clouds
leave Las Vegas without rain
a bright city night

Day 5: Friday, April 5, 2013
Istiqlál (Independence), 16 Bahá (Splendor), 170 BE

Weary of worry
I place my difficulties
in the Hands of God.

Day 6: Saturday, April 6, 2013
Jalál (Glory), 17 Bahá (Splendor), 170 BE

Saturday's pain!

Three recyclable bins lugged to the curb
each bin heavier then the one before,
each trip an exercise in determination.

I sit on the couch waiting
for the pain medication to take effect
and wonder
if the exertion
is worth to pain;
perhaps
I should accept my physical limitations
put everything in the trashcan
and roll the can to curb.

Day 7: Sunday, April 7, 2013
Jamál (Beauty), 18 Bahá (Splendor), 170 BE

a new week begins
with a nightingale singing
partly cloudy sky

Day 8: Monday, April 8, 2013
Kamál (Perfection), 19 Bahá (Splendor), 170 BE

Clouds conceal the sun
wind blows through the olive trees:
did it rain last night?

Day 9: Tuesday, April 9, 2013
Fiḍál (Grace), 1 Jalál (Glory), 170 BE

white clouds and blue sky
cool breeze chills the afternoon
a neighbor's dog barks

Day 10: Wednesday, April 10, 2013
‘Idál (Justice), 2 Jalál (Glory), 170 BE

trashcans at the curb
the afternoon wears on
trashcans unemptied

Day 11: Thursday, April 11, 2013
Istijlál (Majesty), 3 Jalál (Glory), 170 BE

Meditation of the half-light:
Filtered through layers of clouds
light curtains rustles
at sunset.

Meditation of the half-light:
Trapped between the water and the ice
air bubbles seek
escape.

Meditation of the half-light:
Dawn paints morning clouds pink
as night is transformed
into day.

Day 12: Friday, April 12, 2013
Istiqlál (Independence), 4 Jalál (Glory), 170 BE

Mixing powdered milk
Brings back childhood memories
Of Mama in the kitchen.

Day 13: Saturday, April 13, 2013
Jalál (Glory), 5 Jalál (Glory), 170 BE

on a cloudy day
the wind blows through green oak leaves
the sun is setting

Day 14: Sunday, April 14, 2013
Jamál (Beauty), 6 Jalál (Glory), 170 BE

Yawning
on a sleepy Sunday afternoon,
I want to fall asleep
on my
computer keyboard.

Day 15: Monday, April 15, 2013
Kamál (Perfection), 7 Jalál (Glory), 170 BE

all day the wind blew
hazy sky and waving limbs
a day for sneezing

Day 16: Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Fiḍál (Grace), 8 Jalál (Glory), 170 BE

At the end of a long day,
I look at the clouds
bright monsters promising rain
that will never fall.

At the end of a long day,
I watch tree limbs wave
as the wind cools the desert
and the spring evening.

Day 17: Wednesday, April 17, 2013
‘Idál (Justice), 9 Jalál (Glory), 170 BE

the day is chilly
and the dish water is hot
good way to keep warm

Day 18: Thursday, April 18, 2013
Istijlál (Majesty), 10 Jalál (Glory), 170 BE

Today was a good day!
One essay,
one short story,
and a poem;
life writes on.

Day 19: Friday, April 19, 2013
Istiqlál (Independence), 11 Jalál (Glory), 170 BE

a beautiful day
a good day to play outside
in the bright sunshine

Day 20: Saturday, April 20, 2013
Jalál (Glory), 12 Jalál (Glory), 170 BE

a cool breeze blowing
the neighbor's dog is silent
no clouds in the sky

Day 21: Sunday, April 21, 2013
Jamál (Beauty), 13 Jalál (Glory), 170 BE

On the First Day of Ridvan
a nightingale sings
proclaiming a new dawn

Day 22: Monday, April 22, 2013
Kamál (Perfection), 14 Jalál (Glory), 170 BE

The Faces of Climate Change

1

Everywhere I look,
I see the faces of climate change.

I see the faces of climate change,
in scorched fields
waiting for rain that will never come.

I see the faces of climate change,
in the eyes of mothers
wondering where they will find food
for their starving children.

I see the faces of climate change,
in dust clouds
of fertile topsoil
blowing across once prosperous
farm land.

I see the faces of climate change,
in the faces of animals
searching for green
in the middle of brown and dying
meadow.

Everywhere I look,
I see the faces of climate change.

2

Look out your window,
pick up the morning paper,
turn on the evening news,
and you will see
the Faces of Climate Change.

You will see,
humanity
struggling to survive
climate change.

You will see,
animals
on the edge of extinction
because of climate change.

Walk to your bathroom mirror
and you will see
one of the Faces of Climate Change.

Day 23: Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Fiḍál (Grace), 15 Jalál (Glory), 170 BE

morning wind whistling
and rattling the backyard gate
chilled the air of dawn

Day 24: Wednesday, April 24, 2013
‘Idál (Justice), 16 Jalál (Glory), 170 BE

baby birds chirping
nightingales and sparrows sing
gentle breeze blowing

Day 25: Thursday, April 25, 2013
Istijlál (Majesty), 17 Jalál (Glory), 170 BE

frightened sparrow flies
escapes back porch through loose screen
he sings happily

Day 26: Friday, April 26, 2013
Istiqlál (Independence), 18 Jalál (Glory), 170 BE

eighty-two degrees
a long sleepless night waiting
cooler temperatures

Day 27: Friday, April 27, 2013
Jalál (Glory), 19 Jalál (Glory), 170 BE

Again,
the chill sits in;
in the house
it feels like 67 degrees,
but the thermostat
reads 75.

What is happening to me?

I am light headed,
which means I cannot drive safely,
so today
I will stay home.

Do I have a temperature?

Since I cannot find the thermometer
the question
is rendered academic.

I yawn,
but sleep is not an option,
at least,
this early in the day.

Day 30: Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Fiḍál (Grace), 3 Jamál (Beauty), 170 BE

I am in recovery,
from two
or was it three days
of ill health.

Chills,
the desire to drink water
instead of coffee,
no desire for food,
forgetting to make blog enteries
or was I just too tired.

Did I write poems
without realizing I wrote them
because
I had the need to sleep?

I will have to check
the loose leaf folder
next to my sleeping couch.