Today is National Poetry Day. This year's theme is "water, water everywhere" and after much searching, I found a poem which I think reflects the month and includes a passing reference to water:
"O suns and skies and clouds of June,
And flowers of June together,
Ye cannot rival for one hour
October's bright blue weather;
When loud the bumble-bee makes haste,
Belated, thriftless vagrant,
And goldenrod is dying fast,
And lanes with grapes are fragrant;
When gentians roll their fringes tight
To save them for the morning,
And chestnuts fall from satin burrs
Without a sound of warning;
When on the ground red apples lie
In piles like jewels shining,
And redder still on old stone walls
Are leaves of woodbine twining;
When all the lovely wayside things
Their white-winged seeds are sowing,
And in the fields, still green and fair,
Late aftermaths are growing;
When springs run low, and on the brooks,
In idle golden freighting,
Bright leaves sink noiseless in the hush
Of woods, for winter waiting;
When comrades seek sweet country haunts,
By twos and twos together,
And count like misers, hour by hour,
October's bright blue weather.
O suns and skies and flowers of June,
Count all your boasts together,
Love loveth best of all the year
October's bright blue weather."
'October's Bright Blue Skies' is by Helen Hunt Jackson, 1830 - 1835.
I have to confess and you've probably guessed that the bright blue sky in the above photo was snapped much nearer to June than October. October blue skies are so much softer than those of June, not usually as warming but just as welcome and perhaps more appreciated.
Lovely poem Anna, I love October, and that captured the feel of it perfectly. And nice to see some blue sky, given that outside the grey of the sky is merging seemlessly into the grey of the sea so that it is impossible to tell the difference between them!
ReplyDeleteLovely Poem and how true about October blue skies. Not long now before clocks go back and it'll be dark already by the time we get home from work, so hopefully we get lots of October blue skies till then.
ReplyDeleteWe are having those October skies and that wonderful poem could be written about the Perigord.
ReplyDeleteYes, it was certainly not an October sky! Thanks for the poem and for reminding me it was National Poetry Day. I must write it on the calendar for next year so I can work towards writing a poem for my post - wasn't especially inspired today!
ReplyDeleteHi Anna! I do hope we get some nice blue sky this October :)
ReplyDeleteLovely poem. It's been grey skies here over the last couple of days, it would be nice to have some blue ones over the weekend.
ReplyDeleteThanks for all your comments. Not much in the way of blue October skies for a few days but let's hope that there are more on the horizon :)
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