May Jaunt

I really like barns, trees, footpaths, bridges. A friend and I went to a quilt show together. On the return trip, I noticed a free-standing concrete bridge abutment in a field along the thruway. It prompted a small quilt (two actually, one for me, one for her) with this saying: "Friendship like a bridge supports us on the journey through life." At least that's what I came up with.

Today, the first of May, was my first day riding on my favorite bicycle trail. Most of autumn's leaves have blown away.

Wildflowers rise from the forest floor. Groups of Mayapples with their deeply lobed leaves like umbrellas cover one area. Another hill boasts a gathering of Trillium: large flowered White, and burgundy Purple. Bloodroot show its basal leaf which curls around the stalk, before the single white flower with yellow crown appears. Rue Anemone, Wild Oats, and Yellow Coltsfoot are evident. And the ferns clumped at the feet of the Birch Trees.

the Fern
symbol of sincerity,
voiceless sentinel
of the silent woodlands
has veins
fronds
spores
which perpetuate the race.

"Found Poetry" (selected words arrangedin the order in which found in the text)
from Flowers and Ferns in Their Haunts Page 185

It amazes me that I remember so many of the flowers and birds identified while I hiked along the AT in 1980. That lifestyle, so basic yet critical- living alongside of nature at the mercy of the elements, having only what one carries on one's back- seems to be "in my blood" and I find myself longing for the peace and beauty of the outdoors experience. And rue the loss of my once-in-a-lifetime most excellent hiking partner.