Several years ago I gathered my courage and showed a selection of my poetry to a local ‘Writer in Residence’. The most powerful message he gave me was to continue writing with my ‘ordinary words’, as I called them. Since then I have been on a journey to continue writing using ordinary words, which come from the heart.
Green saturates
every sense
~ a miracle
in chlorophyll ~
suddenly here
.
Leaves appear
in glorious iterations
emerald bursts
topped with
delicate petals
.
Ferns folded
within folds
unravel with
geometric grace
to the tick of
dandelion clocks
.
River races on
without sleep
washing new life
to the ocean
snow-chilled
and urgent
.
And the birds
oh the birds
they sing
every daylight hour
staking claims
making love
guarding home
just because
.
By Carys Owen
‘
Loosely related to the theme of nature,
my hymn to the late arrival of spring.
.
You are the one
without a voice
without a pen
without a friend
.
You are the one
without daylight
without a square meal
without peace
.
We strain to hear
your words
spoken in hushed tones
chasing freedom
.
We strain to hear
your name
so we may speak it
and bring you home
.
By Carys Owen
This poem was written on the theme of ‘Uncaging the Poet’
Mindful of the many people who are imprisoned for speaking
their truth, I imagined the ones who receive no attention or
publicity . Thanks to Amnesty International and PEN who
work tirelessly to bring these writers, thinkers, loved-ones
home.
.
Octopus pulls in treasures
from the ocean floor
shells, carapaces, coral
all to adorn her
patchwork façade
her undersea blanket fort
built from the inside out
designed to confound
the hunter and befuddle
the love rival
she hunkers down
like 27 Roman legionaries
in testudo formation
shields locked to
protect soft parts
sliding the last plate in place
she spies through a tiny gap
pinpointing her moment
to escape
.
By Carys Owen
Inspired by the poetry prompt ‘animal architecture’
and this amazing creature
.
Welcome to old friends
cedar, spruce, hemlock, fir
.
Welcome to our families
deer, otters, marmots, geese
.
Welcome to stealthy hunters
cougars, wolves, sea-lions, martens
.
Welcome to the fisher-folk
herons, scoters, cormorants, grebes
.
Welcome to the inter-tidal clan
sun stars, oysters, anemones, crabs
.
Welcome to the deep sea divers
halibut, kelp, octopus, seals
.
Welcome to the night-time crew
barred owls, bats, mice, raccoons
.
Welcome to the pond dwellers
tadpoles, salamanders, dragonflies, toads
.
Welcome to the budding plants
sword fern, skunk cabbage, fiddleheads, lilies
.
Welcome to the forest lovers
woodpeckers, squirrels, lichen, moss
.
Welcome to the ocean schools
dolphins, humpbacks, herring, eels
.
Welcome to the gift-givers
thimbleberry, salmonberry, hazelnut, salal
.
Welcome to the pollinators
wasps, bees, hummingbirds and humble flies
.
Welcome to the tireless gardeners
earthworms, snails, robins, moles
.
Welcome to the microscopic wonders
bacteria, plankton, microbes, nematodes
.
Welcome to the earth enrichers
leaf litter, fungus, beetles, humus
.
Welcome to the engineers
ravens, beavers, spiders, ants
.
Welcome to the balladeers
loons, tree frogs, chickadees
.
Welcome to the councillors
seagulls, crows, Pacific waves
.
Welcome to the new arrivals
fawns, chicks, cubs, kits
.
Welcome to the ancient ones
mountains, forests, ocean, rivers
.
Welcome to our wild, wise elders
salmon, eagle, orca, bear
.
Welcome to the human ones
with respect and gratitude to First Nations
.
Welcome to the longer days
and shorter nights
.
Welcome to the warming sun
and sustaining rain
.
Welcome to a dawning season
where you can choose
to begin again
.
WELCOME TO
A WILD NEW LIFE
.
By Carys Owen
.
Written for @wildwisesociety in honour of their
‘Wild New Life’ event on April 30th
at Willow Point Hall, Campbell River.
Everyone is welcome!
.
The hollow in
the bed she made
is filled with love
.
the silence where her
dog tags rang
is filled with love
.
the stillness where she
gazed and explored
is filled with love
.
the void once awash
with sighs and snores
is filled with love
.
the place in my arms
where she melted in
is filled with love
.
the empty beach where
she skipped and wove
is filled with love
.
the gentle waves that
bathed her toes
all filled with love
.
the big sky and the
mountain view
love, love, love
.
By Carys Owen
Rest well dear friend
Kenzie 2009-2023
The nature of my animal,
Kenzie, is love, love, love
and a lot of cheekiness!
xxxx
I left town years ago
and moved to the woods
with a forest
for a back yard
~ trilliums in spring
mushrooms in fall ~
.
a grassy clearing
perfect for daisies
bordered by fiddleheads
tended by deer
.
maple saplings shoot up
fresh and green
grand fur stretch overhead
moss carpets the shade
and just beyond
.
are skunk cabbage, huckleberry
salmonberry, sword fern
fawn lilies, ocean spray
Oregon grape, vanilla leaf
licorice fern, lupins
columbines, dandelions
cedar, oak and hemlock
.
I asked around
and they all agreed-
none of them
are weeds
.
By Carys Owen
Written for the dVerse Poetry prompt of ‘Weeds’
I live in two worlds
separated by vast waters
~ half a lifetime in each ~
my heart shared
between
touchstones
.
Here on an island
wild and rugged
where I walk the beach
daily and traverse
forests to reach
home
.
There on an island
with my daughter
~ a windswept beach
and a bus ride home
to Zoom with my son
her brother
.
Our orbits
sometimes align
but mostly I am resigned
to drift happily between
two worlds
oceans apart
.
By Carys Owen
Written for a prompt about place and space by d’Verse Poetics
It’s not in the history
nor is it in the yet to come
it’s not in it’s melody
nor in the shape it holds
.
This friendship
is a rare and wondrous thing
that sits right here
in the breaths
we take
and listens
whole-heartedly
.
By Carys Owen
.
This quadrille about friendship was written to include a line from a blogger friend’s poem…it ended up being inspired by his whole poem! Thanks Bjorn Rudberg !
Any dVerse poets who wish to use a line from one of my poems are welcome to do so, please credit me and link back to my poem- cheers!
This kiss has travelled miles
kept safe in a pocket
wrapped in silk
it has journeyed oceans
and rocky trails
burning a hole
through days
impatient to be planted
on my lover’s lips
.
this kiss
.
and
.
this kiss
.
and
.
this
.
kiss
.
By Carys Owen
.
A ‘golden oldie’ from my book ‘Into the Ordinary’ for
She sits on my feet
these days
needful of touch
no words
just love
.
We equal each other
breathing together
sharing a pulse
best friends
for a lifetime
.
Hard to imagine
another way
as we amble
through days
hearts like diamonds
.
By Carys Owen
Carys Owen Poetry 