Thunderhead: And Other Poems - Softcover

Grant, Kenneth E.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1491852968 ISBN 13: 9781491852965

Publisher: AuthorHouse, 2014

Synopsis

The author has described the poems in this book as the "songs in my heart" since they reflect the many varied experiences life has offered and the colorful variety of people he has been privileged to know. They also reflect the profound impression the natural world has left upon him. Through his poetry he seeks to share these experiences with others.

About this title

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Thunderhead

and other poems

By KENNETH E. GRANT

AuthorHouse LLC

Copyright © 2014 Kenneth E. Grant
All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-1-4918-5296-5

Contents

Section One, 
Thunderhead, 3, 
Rainclouds, 5, 
Morning Comes, 6, 
The Storm, 8, 
Rushing, 10, 
The March Of The Clouds, 12, 
When It Rains, 12, 
Celebrate, 13, 
Nocturne, 13, 
First Snow, 14, 
G'night, 15, 
Cool Night, 16, 
Wonder, 17, 
Fireflies, 18, 
Night, 20, 
Morning, 21, 
Summer's Heatin' Up, 22, 
Rain Puddles, 23, 
Lady Bug, 25, 
The Hawk, 26, 
Niagara, 27, 
Quiet Time, 28, 
Seasons, 30, 
A Pause, 32, 
The River, 33, 
Flying Home, 34, 
Sunset, 37, 
Prayer For Tonight, 38, 
Hope, 40, 
She Wept, 42, 
Sitting Quietly, 45, 
When Then Was Now, 46, 
Section Two, 
I Searched For Someone, 51, 
Far Away, 54, 
A Better Dawn, 55, 
Faith, Hope And Love, 56, 
Sorrows Past, 57, 
Somewhere, 58, 
This New Day, 59, 
Bright Angel, 60, 
Valentine, 61, 
Miss You, 62, 
Day Lost, 63, 
Today, 64, 
Beloved, 65, 
Ode To A Pause For Tea, 67, 
No Longer Vagabond, 68, 
Remember?, 70, 
Thinking Of You, 73, 
Let Me Walk With You, 74, 
The Chapel Of The Deep, 76, 
To A Friend In A Difficult Time, 78, 
To Fly Free, 79, 
Thoughts Just Now, 80, 
Since You've Gone, 81, 
The Plains, 82, 
What Surprises Lie Await, 84, 
Thoughts Of A Life Self-Taken, 86, 
The Passing Of A Friend, 88, 
Deep In A Distant Throat, 90, 
Quiet Thoughts Of An Old Love, 92, 
Evening, 93, 
Ought, 94, 
Check List, 96, 
Contentment, 98, 
Goodbye We Said, 100, 
Anthropos (An Ancient Greek Word For Man), 102, 
The Clock, 103, 
A Time For You, 104, 
Section Three, 
New Year, 109, 
Time, 111, 
Hold Still!, 112, 
Long Day's End, 114, 
Dun-A-Rovin', 116, 
Minds Much Wiser, 119, 
Candle Thoughts, 121, 
The Wonder, 122, 
I Ran, 124, 
Oops!, 126, 
There Is A Spirit, 128, 
Wondering, 130, 
Healed, 131, 
Faith, 132, 
Until Tomorrow Comes, 134, 
There Was A Time, 136, 
Evening Reverie, 138, 
Dreams In Life's Autumn, 139, 
A Moment, 140, 
Christmas Time, 142, 
Retrospect, 144, 
Twilight, 147, 
The Controversy, 148, 
Day's Journey, 149, 
The Shadowed Place, 150, 
Solitude, 151, 
While Daylight Lasts, 152, 
Suppertime, 154, 
Sometime, 156, 
Regal, 159, 
Old Warrior Song, 160, 
Night Song, 161, 
One Last Song, 162, 
Once Upon A Time, 164, 
Merry Almost Christmas, 166, 
Measurement, 168, 
The River, 169, 
Journey Remembered, 170, 
Long Thoughts, 173, 

CHAPTER 1

    THUNDERHEAD

    Thunderhead
    Bright monarch of an azure sky
    Boiling up five hundred stories tall
    Lightening laced
    Thunder throated
    Splendid, shining specter
    Of this summer day
    Will your rain skirted majesty last the night?
    Or will some firmer wind,
    Some invisible, fateful billow of the sky
    Tumble your storied grandeur
    Scattering the snow and hail
    Along the ridges westward
    And the morning find you but
    Wisps and vapors?

    Beneath you now
    In this quiet meadow sweet with grass
    I muse and wonder
    Ponder the waning day
    Feel the night breeze gently
    Touch my face
    Soon stars will dust the dome
    Where now your billows climb
    Flaunting their borrowed fire
    Already shadows lengthen from
    The leafy wind row by the road
    The last lark call echoes in the field
    To bid the day goodbye
    Then the night
    Sable robed
    Sequined with a million stars
    Will host the chorus in the grasses
    Singing their song to a night wind
    Tomorrow?
    When dawn trickles through the fences of the dark
    What will climb the blue vaulted air?
    Thunderheads
    Lightning laced
    Thunder throated
    Climbing up five hundred stories tall
    And in the meadow underneath
    Other eyes
    And upturned faces
    Full of awe
    And wonder


    RAINCLOUDS

    Grey sky-ships
    Driven by the wild sea wind
    Sweeping low across the valley
    Where the trees bend down
    Weeping clouds
    Tattered by your landward journey
    Sorrow shrouds
    For all earth's dreams undone

    Rainclouds
    Show me your silver lining
    Clear and flee away
    Let my heart warm again
    To joy and laughter
    And dreams rise up
    And kiss the coming day!


    MORNING COMES

    Morning comes
    Eventually
    And not even a lack of
    Sleep-graced hours
    Can delay the
    Silver edge of dawn
    Or keep the lark from
    Rising to the sun

    So
    I suppose
    I should be rising too
    To go about the things
    It appears
    That I should do

    Singing like the lark
    Has not been granted me
    And
    Flying's not an option
    For featherless creatures
    Lacking wings

    Yet
    A heart may fly
    And spirits soar
    And dreams give wings
    To earthlings such as I
    So that the lark
    Need not soar alone!

    Morning has come
    The day begun
    The silver trumpets
    Of the dawn
    Sound their reveille

    So
    I shall rise
    To do the things that lead
    Up the winding path
    To where a dream
    Lies waiting


    THE STORM

    Thunder rumbled
    While the sky along the mountains
    Darkened
    And the day began to frown

    Angry flashes of jagged light
    Illumined the ominous advance
    As rising from deep slumber
    The giant of the storm
    Arose and stretched

    Then
    Gathering great fists of hail
    Flung down upon a hapless earth
    A withering barrage!
    Breathing with icy breath
    Upon the windows of
    Our tiny town

    Suddenly it broke
    Full fury
    A wild and crazed wind
    Shrieked and howled
    As though a thousand banshees
    Rode lightning horses
    Through the tortured sky

    Until
    At last
    They thundered on
    Fury fading
    The great bass drums
    Quieted
    Leaving the trees
    Dripping silver droplets
    In the returning sun!


    RUSHING

    Rush!
    And rush some more
    Pell-mell
    Going here and there
    As fast
    As freeways will allow
    Believing that it all
    Must be necessary

    Else why would we be
    Racing so pell-mell
    Here and there
    Trusting
    That when we arrive
    We will find
    It was all worthwhile

    But if
    I find it
    Otherwise
    I'll be sorry
    I did not go
    To the park instead
    And fall asleep
    Beneath
    A great green tree


    THE MARCH OF THE CLOUDS

    I hear no drum
    No march of tramping feet
    Nor shrilling pipe
    As I look out my window
    At the sky
    Yet
    A thousand feet above
    Grandly marching
    To no anthem but the sighing wind
    Go the serried ranks of clouds
    Moving with a grandeur and a grace
    That befits the majesty
    Of any king.


    WHEN IT RAINS

    The soft grey clouds race by
    Hurrying to hills that lie
    Hunkered 'gainst the land
    A hundred thousand years

    The grey sky weeps
    And with its tears
    Washes clean again the
    Shining face of leaves and flowers
    And satiates the thirsty ground
    That births all living things


    CELEBRATE

    Golden light spills between
    Green trees lining avenues
    Where people hurry by
    Unseeing

    Birdsongs blend
    With city sounds
    To form a symphony
    Celebrating day

    Wind chased leaves
    Scamper along the sidewalk
    Dancing to the joy tune
    Echoed by my soul in passing
    Celebrating too!


    NOCTURNE

    Soft, soft the grey shroud drifting
    Street lamps haloed
    Footsteps muffled in a
    Wet enfoldment
    Night breathes quiet now
    Dreaming of resurrection


    FIRST SNOW

    Fall was past
    The signs of winter coming
    All were there
    The trees grown bare
    That just a week ago
    Were clad in gold and red
    While nights grew chill
    And fall grew old
    And then last night
    The moon slid silently from view
    Behind a cool, grey cloud
    And the sky came down in
    Great wet flakes of snow
    Blanketing all
    Wrapping the silent world in
    Winter's cold embrace


    G'NIGHT

    G'night
    Tho stars shine on
    A million million strong
    And a giant yellow moon
    Glides silently
    Across a dark night sky

    Now
    It's time
    For daytime creatures
    Such as you and I
    To trundle off to bed
    Close weary eyes
    And let mistress night
    Her own dark company
    Entertain
    Who revel
    In cool mysterious places
    Lighted only
    By the silent stars


    COOL NIGHT

    Dark
    Cold
    No breeze at all
    And any moon there is
    Must be hiding 'neath a cloud
    And so
    I wrap my arms
    Around myself
    And quicken steps
    To where a warm fire glows
    And all the chill of night
    Lies outside my window pane


    WONDER

    How many stars are there
    Out in the vast night sky?
    Wrapped in silence
    I wonder

    A sliver of moon
    A wisp of drifting cloud
    Awed by the
    Incredible display
    My noisy soul lies
    Still
    Mute

    It dawns
    (While not quite apt the phrase)
    That numbers are not
    After all
    What matters in the end
    For the gift of
    Wonder
    Of itself
    Brings a
    Mystic intoxication
    And
    Profound
    Humility


    FIREFLIES

    I saw them dancing
    In the night
    Their tiny lanterns
    Flickering
    Against the magic of
    The darkened wood

    And it was
    As though
    A thousand fairy wings
    Fanned the warm
    Night air
    Moist with dew
    Distilling
    On the meadow grass

    And I thought that
    There must be
    An elfin dialogue or two
    Held beneath
    The toadstool's fragile dome
    As if
    The crickets ought to sing
    A song or two
    Before the moon comes out

    And so I stood quite still
    As once more
    The slumbering child
    Awoke within
    And wonder was reborn
    To clothe the sable night
    With magic
    Where the fireflies danced....


    NIGHT

    Cool and dark
    Deep the shadows
    Underneath the trees
    While all about
    The silken robe of night
    Envelops and enfolds
    The familiar world I know
    But hours ago!
    Yet
    There is a restfulness
    A peace
    That comes with night
    The clamor of the day
    Is hushed
    And earth breathes
    Quiet now
    Except for crickets
    Singing their own lullaby
    To the stars

    So
    I rest
    And with all the host
    Of daytime things
    Let the gentle hand
    Of Sleep
    Close my eyes
    Until the night is past
    And daylight
    Sets the waking world
    To singing


    MORNING

    The day begins
    A silvering of sky
    A chattering of birds
    Moist earth smell rising with
    The ground mist in a
    Pungent incense
    Calling life
    To praise

    I lift my heart, my Father
    And in what must be primeval instinct
    Place my early morning soul
    Within your hands

    Before the heat of day
    Anticipating the unusual with
    A mixture of enthusiasm
    And dread
    I ask you
    To fit me for the way
    That only you can see
    And guide my steps 'til sunset
    And rest again
    In thee


    SUMMER'S HEATIN' UP

    Summer's heatin' up
    I'd say
    Humidity is high
    And drip dry
    Is the order of the day
    Hazy sun seems stalled
    At mid day's station
    While the blue hound sleeps
    In the shadow of the porch

    Seems to me
    Might be time
    To do a little nappin'
    In the ole garden swing
    Since it appears most everything
    Is dozin'
    While the sun
    Sits up there a-blazin'
    In a hazy, summer sky


    RAIN PUDDLES

    Shining places
    Mirroring the sky
    Murky places that
    Wear the face of clouds and
    Patches of clear blue
    Catching rays of sun

    Rain puddles
    May my life, like yours
    Brief and passing
    Mirror heights
    And reflect the lovely things
    That cannot die


    LADY BUG

    Tiny little lady
    Like a drop of red
    Climbing up the stem
    To where
    Your aphid cows
    Are fed

    Is your world
    As simple
    As a walk upon that leaf?
    Or do you worry
    That insecticide
    Will bring it all to grief?


    THE HAWK

    Red hawk sailing high
    So high
    Where chill blue oceans of
    Crystal air
    Buoy the feathered pinions
    Lifting the sharp eyed hunter
    Beyond the reach
    Of guns


    NIAGARA

    Cascade of mighty waters
    Thundering down
    Wrapped in clouds of
    Drifting mist
    Lifting from the rocks below
    White-laced with foam

    I watch the gulls
    Sweeping over the abyss
    Wheel and turn
    On invisible pathways of
    Spray laden air
    Navigating above cataclysm

    Thoughts drift casually
    Through my mind
    As to how many centuries
    It will be
    Before the ancient rock
    Is worn level-down by the
    Torrent at the rim
    And Niagara becomes
    Simply
    Another bend in the river


    QUIET TIME

    There is a time
    To turn
    And simply walk away
    Without need for
    An excuse
    Except
    That it is time
    To be alone awhile

    Alone
    When the room is quiet
    And a breeze
    Gently blows the curtain
    Where the sun shines in
    And people sounds
    Are hushed
    For now
    There will be a time
    For returning
    To hold out hands
    And to lift a brother's load
    Or to be a sister's
    Consolation
    There is work to do
    When contemplation's done

    But now
    The heart yearns
    For the discipline
    Of silence
    Where listening happens
    And the Holy lays a hand
    Upon a fractured soul
    Binding wounds
    Making whole once more
    The pilgrim seeking God
    In solitude


    SEASONS

    So fly the hours
    The days
    The years
    Scarce noticed when life is full
    Of busyness
    And cares
    Until one day
    The torrid pace is slowed
    And from some place of
    Momentary rest
    One observes
    Flowers blooming by the path
    A vast arch of azure sky
    And the ever-changing pageant
    Of the clouds
    That move and pass
    Their transient drama to become
    At last
    A memory
    However grand

    So, upon reflection
    Does my life appear
    Buoyed through the tumult
    Of the years
    Shaped and tossed about
    By winds of fate unknown

    Blue sky and warming sun
    And then the rain
    Thunder and passing storm
    The tempest of our time
    And place
    Until
    At last
    One settles back
    Pausing for a spell
    To feel the breath of evening
    Touch a weathered face

    Now, in the west
    Clouds turn golden with the sun
    Gently reminding me
    That the seasons have
    Most largely passed
    And I
    Without regret
    Must trust
    The God of every time and place
    That for me
    As for every living thing
    Spring will come again
    At last


    A PAUSE

    It occurs to me
    Sometimes often now
    Life ought not be
    Pell-mell
    Though admittedly
    That thought occurs
    Quite often when
    It is
    A pause
    To gather scattered thoughts
    To breathe deep
    The garden's gift of beauty
    And sweet air
    To bathe the senses in
    The profound refreshment
    Of silence

    Ah yes!
    Such a pause has power
    To heal a harried soul
    And perhaps
    Put life back
    On track


    THE RIVER

    So swiftly flows the river
    White foaming at the rocks
    Swirling eddies
    Leaping torrents
    Cascading into pools deep shaded
    Where the headlong journey slows
    And pauses
    But never stops

    Life so like the river
    So like the floating leaves are we
    Facing on
    Through shade and shadow
    In dappled pools
    Through riffles dancing in the sun
    But moving always
    Slow or fast
    At last arriving
    At a distant and
    Eternal sea

(Continues...)

Excerpted from Thunderhead by KENNETH E. GRANT. Copyright © 2014 Kenneth E. Grant. Excerpted by permission of AuthorHouse LLC.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

Edition details

• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Publication date: 2014
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1491852968
• ISBN 13: 9781491852965
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 188