Tag Archives: nature

Jeweled Desert

Credit - gorp.com

Credit – gorp.com

By D. R. DiFrancesco

~~~~~

The late fall sky

Bathed in tangerine and magenta

Fragrance of Palo Verde and Cottonwood fills the air

Serenity cloaks the towering granite peaks

Wrapping them in shades of purple and gold

Exalting their millennial majesty

The coyote’s bay

Floating effortlessly through the canyons

They share their lonesome longing song

Adorned as if otherworldly

Cacti and the gnarled Joshua tree dot the desolate Sonoran desert

Prickly and unpretentious in their beauty

The landscape ruled by snake and scorpion

Rattle of the tail and venomous sting, relics of the deadly precipice

The destiny awaiting the oblivious visitor

Rain devoid xeriscape

Designed by the marvelous hand of nature

Wondrous in it’s simplicity and complexity

Man could not have created such a miraculous wonder

For our nature is to destroy

Still the creator left flawed beings as the keepers

To cherish and protect his prized ecru jewel.

A Question of Eternity

Credit - window2universe.org

Credit – window2universe.org

By D. R. DiFrancesco

~~~~~~

Who am I

Did not my spirit exist be for me

Perhaps not in this form,

Though most surely it did exist.

~~

The things I am are not new to me

My essence existed at the beginning

Conception did not create it nor can death destroy it

So who was I before.

~~

Maybe a river running through Africa

A blue whale navigating the seas

Or maybe a playful butterfly flying on high

Could not part of me have existed in all of these.

~~

In this I find comfort

The body being merely a vessel

Temporary and dispensable on loan from the earth

To be gladly returned upon passing.

~~

The energy that is me remains

Free of this vessel

Free to become whatever the universe deems fit

Glorious and unhindered by my physical being.

~~

There is peace in thoughts of this

Knowing I have always been and will always be

Could this be the eternal life spoken of in religion

Whether of God or of nature, we may never know.

Solace

credit – whitegadget..com

By D. R. DiFrancesco

~~~~~

What beauty this world has on offer

The natural and spiritual surrounds us but we do not see

Too busy with the distractions of the material

Simplicity in the song of the bird

The majestic wonder of the mountain

The desolate elegance of the desert

The mystery of God

Lost among our earthly pursuits

With eyes closed and head arched towards heaven

My mind banishes pain, suffering and torment

Solitude seeps into my bones

A sense of peace forgotten floods my subconscious

The smell of wildflowers

The flutter of the hummingbirds wings

The lonesome howl of the coyote

The joy of spiritual oneness

Sights, sounds and smells I have long ignored

I can almost feel the arms of God drawing me close

Tears shed for time wasted dissipate in a divine awakening

Renewal washes over me

The material is no long all consuming

Reborn with a new sense of purpose

Filled with the glory of nature and the solemnity of nirvana

I have once again found solace and peace in this finite life

All through that which had always lay before me

But I could not see

Monarch’s Reign

Monarch Butterfly

By D. R. DiFrancesco

~~

Mandarin,white, obsidian glory,

Exquisite majesty soaring,

Graceful feathery flutter,

Whisper silent utter.

~

Fairy tale grace inspired,

Marathon distance flier,

Born in natures swaddle,

Angelic infants toddle.

~

Innocent beauty undercover,

Lives to boast a princely lover,

Short lived romance symphony plays,

‘Til they part on dying days.

~

Crown jeweled natures elegance,

Wings rhythm heavenly trance,

King and Queen exalted royalty,

Nobility commands subjects loyalty.

~

Behold honors modest atonement,

Loveliness granted in its moment,

Rembrandt’s stroke to you would pale,

God’s paragon winged angel you sail.

Image: monarch-butterfly.info

A Grand Journey

By D. R. DiFrancesco

A quite stream,

Meandering its way over sand and stone,

Shows no beginning,

Leaves no end.

Slowly changing its destiny,

Evolving over eons into something much grander,

Languid yet constant,

Magnificent in its determination.

Housed under an awning of green,

Running a marathon clear and cool,

While aiding stowaways on their epic journey,

Its own destination is uncertain.

It is life giving and life taking,

Giving vitality to both predator and prey,

Survival of the fittest,

Its beauty begets complacency.

Soothing sounds,

Bubbling and lapping as it follows its path ,

Serene and solemn,

Behold!…Natures finest hour.

Purity in the World – Haiku

By D. R. DiFrancesco

**********************************

Your skin soft as down,

Pure as the wind driven snow,

Pressed up against me.

**********************************

Our Lords presence floats,

On the wings of an angel,

Renewing my faith.

**********************************

A child’s laughter,

Innocent and frolicsome,

Instills me with joy.

**********************************

Beauty of nature,

Unspoiled by man’s footsteps,

Given as God’s gift.

Love of Night

By D. R. DiFrancesco

As days light wanes,

Violet and mandarin hues apprehend the sky,

Birds chirps fade into peaceful silence,

Music of crickets and cicada fill the air,

Serenity found amongst these simple things,

Warmth of day displaced by coolness of evening,

Moon light clear and blue,

Fractured by transient paper-thin clouds,

Romance wafts softly through the shadow laden trees,

Evenings breeze runs it’s fingers through your hair,

Caressing gently like a lover,

There’s beauty in night,

Friendly, an angel known since youth,

Enveloping and safe,

A blanket, warm, inviting and natural,

Good night my love.

 

The Joy of Nature

Natural Bridge, Virginia D.R.DiFrancesco

By: D. R. DiFrancesco

A thick canopy of green,

Funneling rain like aqueducts,

Cooling an all too parched earth.

The smell of pine,

Fragrant and sweet,

Cutting through the warm, moist air.

The gentle cushion of leaves and mulch,

Soft and inviting beneath travel weary feet,

Like heaven to the disheartened soul.

I had almost forgotten,

All this I had taken for granted in my youth,

A simple beauty wasted.

The air is hot and thick,

While rain soaks me to the skin,

My face blissfully pointed to the sky.

A triumphant crack of thunder,

Shatters the delicate tap dance of the rain on leaves,

Electrifying me with joy.

The glory of nature,

Oft overlooked and under-appreciated,

Still magnificent in all it’s splendor.

The Gift of Simplicity

By D. R. DiFrancesco

The suns glare blinding in it sheer radiance,

Ricocheting off the snow white froth as it lays claim to another piece of shore,

Drawn back to it’s primordial beginnings,

Only to reemerge in it’s own time in some distant land.

 

The song of the gulls,

Circling and floating in anticipation of their next meal,

A beautiful natural thing to behold,

Lives boiled down to simplicity.

 

The snap of the blue claw crab,

Rouses me from my trance,

Unafraid, claws raised in defense of his little piece of turf,

Only to surrender it to return to the sea.

 

Could it be that there are lessons to be learned,

Wisdom in nature so often ignored,

Giving prominence to our petty and corrupt selves,

Hollowed out by our material love.

 

As high tide comes rushing in,

New shore from distant lands makes this beach it’s home,

I am beckoned to take leave,

Walking away with a gift greater than I dared ask for.

Natural Beauty

Natural Bridge – Located in Natural Bridge, VA
Taken July 8, 2012

A gown of crystal flows at your feet

Unpretentious yet purposeful in its design

Your hard exterior shaped by the elements

Wind and water the artists brush

Veins of brown and green soften your skin

Giving life to those harbored within your walls

For centuries you have been looked upon in awe

A natural wonder bathed in warm colors

Ever evolving in size and beauty

Leaving your mark on lives touched

Splendid, majestic, enchanting

Character only the creator could have imagined