ALMOND BLOSSOM
if you don’t look closely at
the rings of the branches,
it could be by anyone.
well, anyone who was among
the greatest painters of the
century: matisse, perhaps.
anyone who had studied
prints from the japanese.
anyone who loved light,
and living things.
anyone who believed in
the rebirth of nature,
the seasons of existence,
the blossoming of the creative.
anyone who had
absorbed the centuries,
had mastered his techniques
and from whose eyes
the scales had fallen.
—from Rattle #13, Summer 2000
_________
Gerald Locklin: “I turn 60 in 2001, and most of my time is taken up teaching, writing, corresponding, swimming laps, or walking the dog. I think it’s probably a bad idea for poets to aspire to be interesting. Simplify, simplify!” (web)
