#WingedWordsWindsday: A Trio of Poems for November Days

 

WINGED WORDS WINDSDAY

Compiled by Rob Chappell (@RHCLambengolmo)

Vol. 1, No. 2: November 10, 2021

 

A Trio of Poems for November Days

 

“November Morning”

By Evaleen Stein (1863-1923)

A tingling, misty marvel

  Blew hither in the night,

And now the little peach-trees

  Are clasped in frozen light.

Upon the apple-branches

  An icy film is caught,

With trailing threads of gossamer

  In pearly patterns wrought.

The autumn sun, in wonder,

  Is gayly peering through

This silver-tissued network

  Across the frosty blue.

The weather-vane is fire-tipped,

  The honeysuckle shows

A dazzling icy splendor,

  And crystal is the rose.

Around the eaves are fringes

  Of icicles that seem

To mock the summer rainbows

  With many-colored gleam.

Along the walk, the pebbles

  Are each a precious stone;

The grass is tasseled hoarfrost,

  The clover jewel-sown.

Such sparkle, sparkle, sparkle

  Fills all the frosty air,

Oh, can it be that darkness

  Is ever anywhere!

 

“The Leaves”

(Anonymous)

The leaves had a wonderful frolic.

They danced to the wind’s loud song.

They whirled, and they floated, and scampered.

They circled and flew along.

The Moon saw the little leaves dancing.

Each looked like a small brown bird.

The Man in the Moon smiled and listened,

And this is the song he heard.

“The North Wind is calling, is calling,

And we must whirl round and round,

And then, when our dancing is ended,

We’ll make a warm quilt for the ground.:

 

“The North Wind Doth Blow”

(Traditional English Rhyme – 16th Century)

The north wind doth blow, and we shall have snow.

And what will poor robin do then, poor thing?

He’ll sit in a barn, and keep himself warm,

And hide his head under his wing, poor thing.

The north wind doth blow, and we shall have snow.

And what will the dormouse do then, poor thing?

Rolled up like a ball, in his nest snug and small,

He’ll sleep till warm weather comes in, poor thing.

The north wind doth blow, and we shall have snow.

And what will the children do then, poor things?

When lessons are done, they must skip, hop, and run,

Until they have made themselves warm, poor things.

 

In November 2013, the Editor arranged and led a field trip for members of the James Scholar Media Team (JSMT) to Japan House for a Saturday afternoon tea ceremony. You can learn more about Japan House and its excellent program offerings @ https://japanhouse.illinois.edu. (Photo Credit: Japan House Staff)