Lunar

Luna moth on a black walnut tree

Hours old,
the luna moth’s wings still look
as if they don’t fit.

*

Full moon.
The starving kitten
cries for milk.

*

At school,
the squire’s moon-faced daughter
was one of many Emilys.

*

Forty years on,
I remember that new-book smell:
You Will Go To The Moon.

*

Entering a patch of moonlight
in the forest,
my sudden boots.

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21 Responses to Lunar

  1. Dick says:

    Sharp, clear and punchy as ever, Dave. Great pic too.

  2. dale says:

    The last is my favorite.

  3. sarah b says:

    Never in my life thought of the adjective ‘sudden” to describe “boots” but of course it works. Great!

  4. Peg Bainbridge says:

    Love this, Dave, pic and poem, no matter which.

  5. leslee says:

    Very nice. All of them, together.

  6. I love your poems, they make me smile…lovely photos as well!
    Chris

  7. Glorious Luna moth! And I especially like the fourth haiku. It reminds me of the old children’s books about the moon and space exploration that I used to read when I was a kid.

  8. lucas says:

    Funny how each has a favorite.

    I adore the second. Simply perfect. As it turns out, I was looking at the moon last night, and I couldn’t come up with anything interesting to say about it. But you have, here.

  9. Laura says:

    I like all of these quite a bit. I saw a huge lunar moth myself this past Sunday evening, on the edge of the forest near a labyrinth just after dusk. The light was dark green and wouldn’t yield a good photograph to me. I had thought of writing something and may still…or not…this is wonderful. I love the sudden boots especially but also the starving kitten.

  10. SB says:

    Yes, ‘simply perfect’.

  11. Dave says:

    Hi everyone – Thanks for all the generous words. These were a little on the experimental side, and were written much too quickly, so I’m glad several of them made a hit.

  12. elizabeth says:

    I’m with Lucas in liking the second best, but it’s that perfect, luminous green at the top that really catches my eye. All these years I’ve been struggling to put a name to the color I keep painting my walls; now I can call it luna-moth green.

  13. happyflower says:

    I love this poem very much! I am a new reader and enjoy your blog. :-)

  14. Wonderful moon poems, Dave. And, love that picture. Hope all is well.

  15. beth says:

    Sheesh, you can tell how absent I’ve been by the fact that I didn’t comment immediately on this one. Gorgeous photo of my favorite moth, and terrific poems. (I like the Emilys.)

    • Dave says:

      Thanks! Glad you liked the Emilys one. Writing a haiku about something historical, not directly experienced (except through the medium of a live play) felt a little weird.

  16. [...] I was taking the garbage to the compost pile one evening after supper when I spotted this luna moth on one of the big black walnut trees in front of the main house. Its wings were still damp; it hadn’t been out of the chrysalis for very long. Somehow in looking at the green wings one notices the green and blue lichens on the tree bark, as well. Impossible not to wax poetic. [...]

  17. Banjo, luna says:

    [...] on the side of a black walnut tree in the yard. It was just one tree over and one day later than last year’s luna moth. As I watched with a flashlight, a harvestman gangled up with the small, lifeless body of a spider [...]

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