.jpg "By Ingrid Taylar from San Francisco Bay Area - California, USA (Wing Asymmetry) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons")
The Beat of Wings
Oh that the sky can accommodate
the beauty of beating wings
flocks of melodious mallards
with distinctive sea-green heads
meander overhead
and I tread tree-lined trails
amble arborous avenues
squander time to follow
my blue eyes turn heavenward
these intractable birds, their images
I savor and save in a pewter cup
unashamedly mesmerized
by the beat of mallard wings.
This poem is written for Tuesday's dVerse Poetics -- where we will be writing poems about something 'beautiful' in any sort of way! There are so many different kinds of beauty, aren't there?
There is indeed something beautiful about the way birds fly in the sky, maybe it is the lightness they convey that contrasts with our own limitations. I also like the form of your poem with the shorter stanza in between the longer ones.
ReplyDeleteFlying to their next destination. Always a fun sight to see, even more so for the cats lol
ReplyDeleteThe eye is beholding the charms of your words~ Lovely, to witness those wings!
ReplyDeleteI, too love this form~
amble arborous avenues... ha... love how that sounds... and there def. is so much beauty in the beat and movement of their wings...
ReplyDeleteI love that you have focused on the sound of wings rather than the visual... Then you have used the alliteration so skilfully so I can almost hear those wings.. I love the birds at spring,,
ReplyDeleteSavor and keep them in a pewter cup Mary ~ What a beautiful sight to behold, smiles ~
ReplyDeleteI love mallards. They seem so awkward when they are taking off, as if their wings are way too small for their plump bodies, but yet there is a beauty in even that...and when they swim...oh so graceful!
ReplyDeleteGlorious - the beauty of beating wings.
ReplyDeleteI've always been an admirer of birds since I was a kid, fascinated by ducks and how they kept perfect form in the sky...
ReplyDeleteDoggone it, Grace always picks my favorite lines too; great minds I suppose fly in similar flocks, /their images/i savor & save.../ A terrific illustration for us of your prompt. I really got off on a prose romp, so went to a Haibun form.
ReplyDeleteI love the way you want to save that image forever - it is wonderful to behold, indeed!
ReplyDeleteWonderful. "We" just hatched our first batch of baby mallard--11 of them. There will be less, no doubt, once the hawks and coyotes get a sight of them. Happens every year.
ReplyDeleteJust in the past few days, the geese have begun to return, and it's a beautiful sight, indeed. I love the melody in that middle stanza.
ReplyDeleteFine! To see and hear and follow and save!
ReplyDeleteThat does not sound like squandered time to me. Taking time to appreciate God's creatures -- especially birds in flight -- is never wasted. Peace, Linda
ReplyDeleteCanada geese sometimes nest on my little lake back in the woods. Magnificent creatures. Who has not dreamed of flying with them?
ReplyDeleteGorgeous. This reminded me of "Lessons from the Geese"by Robert NcNeish.
ReplyDeleteOh, if we could save the beauty of their beating wings in a pewter cup, we would! But most beauty is beyond us and cannot be contained. Lovely prompt and poem, Mary!
ReplyDeleteThis poem of yours is precious! A truly amazing writer you are.
ReplyDelete:)
Oh I do love the beauty of the mallards and their beating wings.Wonderful image of saving the moment in a pewter cup.
ReplyDeleteI think you have captured the beauty of the mallards in flight..I haven't seen them around here.
ReplyDeleteI love to watch them, beautiful Mary.
ReplyDeleteIn the office park where I used to work, were several small ponds because of wetland regulations. One pond was taken over by geese, another by various ducks. This poem brought to mind the many times I have seen them take off or land and those magnificent wings. I love how this poem brings to mind the movement and sound of the wings. The last three lines are incredible. Such moments and sights I save in a special laquer jewel box given to me long ago. This is just a wonderful prompt. Thank you!
ReplyDelete'Oh that the sky can accommodate
ReplyDeletethe beauty of beating wings'
These may be 2 of my favorite lines ever! I love hearing those wings and voices as they fly into the cove - beautiful!
something about the mallards, so resplendent :)
ReplyDeleteYes.. beating wings.. that only know heart of air.. and songs of Sun.. hidden and exposed by clouds alike.. bring song to me.. in ways of air.. where wings of feet.. only know sands alive..:)
ReplyDeleteThis is lovely--I'm especially enamored by "pewter cup"!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful blog, as well as the poem.
ReplyDeleteLove the focus on the sound too.
ReplyDeleteTrying the wordpress option Mary, like I said, love the part about saving images in a pewter cup. Lovely! - thotpurge.wordpress.com
ReplyDeleteThe flapping of wings itself can be beautiful sounds let alone seeing them. Great lines Mary!
ReplyDeleteHank
The liftoff of a large flock of birds is, indeed, an awe-inspiring moment--and once in flight, a glorious sight overhead.
ReplyDeleteMary, this is lovely. It's such a cool time of the year. I saw my Sandhill Cranes on Monday in the back property.
ReplyDeleteThat beat of wings is freedom and beauty. When I lived in England - I always admired these gloriously colorful Mallards - smiles.
ReplyDeleteFun alliteration and vocabulary choices.
ReplyDeleteI must say, I did not follow the pewter cup line -- although others enjoyed it.
I don't know of customs of saving things in pewter cups -- wish I had.
Fun take, Mary.
"Oh that the sky can accommodate / the beauty of beating wings"---I just so love these lines, Mary. To be among those beating wings is def what I wish in my second life.. sigh.. Thank you for the poems that speak beyond beauty, Mary. Smiles.
ReplyDelete- ksm
Birds were an excellent choice for this prompt, Mary. They lift one's soul - their breathtaking beauty and the primordial constant of the beat of wings. Lovely piece.
ReplyDelete