We promised him one more summer
Of picking mushrooms and fishing lakes
He knew all the best places for this
He knew the poisonous from the edible
I wish I had asked him how he could tell
He walked trails till his 87th birthday
Being one with nature and singing to birds
The birds would always answer him
I tried and tried but they wouldn't answer me
I guess I didn't have the right whistle
Grandpa never taught me the right whistle
My lips always buzzed but no whistle
A blue butterfly in a bunch of daffodils
Sealed his fate it seems
For he captured the butterfly
And years later daffodils remind me
As the cancer lies dormant in his bones
And my butterfly garden mourns;
Refusing growth
Death drips yellow
Staining my fingers blue
Author notes
Prompts:
The bunch of daffodils &
I can't find my brittle youth
In a list
- I. To My Family • next in list
- {Starts With D} • next in list
- {Free Verse} • next in list
- {Childhood Nostalgia} • next in list
A contest entry
- Click 49. by perfectsunset.
625 points, ended August 31, 21 entries
Bronze trophy winner
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Comments
1 - 6 of 6
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Exceptional
O.O <---- this is my stunned into silence face.
There is only one word for art like this and we all know it-
Beautiful.
"For he captured the butterfly
And years later daffodils remind me
As the cancer lies dormant in his bones
And my butterfly garden mourns;
Refusing growth
Death drips yellow
Staining my fingers blue"
I can barely fathom beauty like this half the time. So my praise and condolences go out to you. This was masterful and so very, very elegant. Well done.
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This was very beautifully developed.
I like your strong use of emotion
and metaphor throughout. Made this
write very effective, and I really
enjoyed reading. There's a lot of
depth here as well & personal memories.
Loved it.
Best of luck & thanks for entering
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your grandpa sounds like a wonderful man.
I have a soft spot for grandpas, you know
this is a lovely, and thoughtful tribute to someone you really loved and admired, and I think we all need to say goodbye to those who've taught us so much-at some point, their story must be told.
Beautiful.
love,
jin
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Fabulous!! I am absolutely impressed!! This is my favorite of yours that I have read so far!! I love daffodils. They are my favorite flower. I was born in March and every year at the end of January or the beginning of Feb. I see the little yellow heads pop up!! I love the way the smell and the promise of Spring that they bring.I am going to send you a link to one of my poems that was inspired by daffodils...Thank you for sharing this one!!
-Kendal
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this is beautiful,
I read to the end but still wanted you to continue, but on the other hand i loved how you closed it. brilliant
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Ooh.
I quite like this, actually.
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