sprite writes
broodings from the burrow

February 3, 2021


silent poetry 2021: ‘daisies’
posted by soe 1:21 am

Abandoned Trestle

Once upon a time, bloggers used to share poetry on February 2nd to mark St. Brigid’s Day and the Imbolc festival, which span the first couple days of February and mark, like Groundhog Day, the midway point between the Winter Solstice and Spring Equinox.

Largely, the practice has faded away, but I’m fond of it, so I’m sharing a poem with you today anyway. I picked up iNK BLOTS, Vol. 1, by the local D.C. Poetry Collective at Lost City Books on Saturday, as I (and everyone else in the city) was out and about soaking up the rare bluebird day.

Daisies
     ~Vadim Kagan

Who writes of daisies at a time like this,
When worlds are quickly coming to an end,
When states of fear replaced the state of bliss?
But daisies are still beautiful, my friend,
And golden is the dandelion wine.

Who writes of daisies as we lose the fight,
When thousands and thousands are dead,
When states are failing, falling left and right?
But daisies are still beautiful, my friend,
And golden is the dandelion wine.

Who writes of daisies when we live online,
And die with cabin fever taking hold,
But golden is the dandelion wine
And daisies are as beautiful as ever —
Let’s write of daisies. They might save the world.

Kagan shares his poetry on Instagram.

If you’ve enjoyed this poem and would like to support D.C. poetry (and Bread for the City, where proceeds are going), you can order the collection from Lost City’s website.

In previous years, I’ve shared poems by Tom Disch, Sharon Olds, Emily Dickinson, Kyle Dargan, Barbara Crooker, William Stafford, Mary Oliver (twice), Wislawa Szymborska, Stuart Dischell, Jean Esteve, John Frederick Nims, Grace Paley, Heather McHugh, and Barbara Hamby, all of which are worth another read.

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[…] 3. My warm weather walk on Saturday included stops at two bookstores — the new cookbook shop, where I picked up Snacking Cakes, and the used Adams Morgan shop that changed hands last year, and which has added new titles to its stock. I came away with a middle-grade fantasy novel blurbed by Madeleine L’Engle, a pamphlet on identifying trees in the wintertime, and the aforementioned poetry collection. […]

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