(Oil painting, Jane Kohut-Bartels, 2003, “Pastoral” (after Constable)
(Morgan at http://booknvolume.com has posted an interview of Madame Gormosy of Devil’s Revenge fame on her blog website.)
Stuttering winds blow across
Clouds tinted by the failing sun.
Brittle air softens,
Now a faded blue–
Shade of an old man’s watery eyes.
A late flock of Sandhill cranes lift off,
Pale bodies blending in the
Twilight with legs
Flowing dark streamers,
Their celestial cries fall to
Earth–
A harsh, chiding rain.
The trees in the valley
Are massed in darkness
As waning light leaches
Color from nature,
Creeps from field to hillock
And all below prepares for the
Rising of the Corn Moon.
Even frogs in the pond
Listen between croaks
For the intention of the night.
Jane Kohut-Bartels
Copyrighted, 2010-2016 (‘Autumn Dusk’ originally published in “White Cranes of Heaven”, Lulu.com, 2011)
Tags: "White Cranes of Heaven", dversepoets.com, http://booknvolume.com, lulu.com, poetry
September 22, 2016 at 7:38 pm
Lovely 🙂
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September 22, 2016 at 7:52 pm
Holy cats. The last five lines! Wow.
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September 22, 2016 at 8:09 pm
I love Sandhill Cranes. We have a resident population where we live.
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September 22, 2016 at 8:14 pm
So much to like in this poem, I see references to art in the pale blue watery eyes, and is there the maybe one of the frogs that will jump in the old pond as well. The painting is a wonderful match.
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September 22, 2016 at 8:15 pm
Oh, this is lovely. You’ve written in Autumn shades. I love those lines:
‘A late flock of Sandhill cranes lift off,
Pale bodies blending in the
Twilight with legs
Flowing dark streamers,’
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September 22, 2016 at 8:36 pm
Thank you, Kim…I”ll be over tomorrow!
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September 22, 2016 at 8:38 pm
Lovely!
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September 22, 2016 at 8:39 pm
LOL! I haven’t heard “Holy Cats” in a long time.
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September 22, 2016 at 8:44 pm
Thank you, Bjorn.
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September 22, 2016 at 8:47 pm
Beautiful imagery of cranes, a painting with words!
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September 22, 2016 at 8:53 pm
Thank you! plus a painting with messy paint.
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September 22, 2016 at 11:31 pm
the rising of the corn moon. beautiful painting and words Jane ~
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September 22, 2016 at 11:37 pm
Thanks Grace. I;’ll be over tomorrow.
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September 23, 2016 at 1:01 am
“Shade of an old man’s watery eyes” what a gorgeous description of the sky!
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September 23, 2016 at 7:25 am
Amazing how you made me hear those cranes somehow. The frogs, too.
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September 23, 2016 at 1:33 pm
Thank you. I always hear the cranes before I see them.
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September 23, 2016 at 1:34 pm
Thank you, Margaret. It can seem that in the Fall.
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September 23, 2016 at 9:41 pm
Quite wonderful Jane, both your autumnal poem and painting.
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September 23, 2016 at 10:08 pm
Hiya, Sweetie! Thank you!… well, that oil painting was around 2003, and by 1995, I had switched to watercolor. So…going back to oil was really awkward. I had forgotten all oil technique…it took me a while to figure it out….as you know, and you are a fantastic painter….it’s the complete opposite of watercolor. LOL!
Thank you, Connie, for reading and your wonderful comment. I’ll be over tomorrow…this has been a shit day where my car broke down in heavy traffic and I almost got run over. Yikes!
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September 25, 2016 at 4:29 pm
wishing you better days
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September 26, 2016 at 4:22 pm
Stunning imagery and the painting is gorgeous, too. What a beautiful pairing. 💜
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September 26, 2016 at 7:02 pm
Thank you! the painting came before the poetry, but so it goes. I’ve been a painter for decades….and now? I’m trying to get back to it…but haven’t any walls left for more. LOL! Poetry is new for me.
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September 26, 2016 at 7:05 pm
You are blessed at both. Can’t wait to read more!
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