Welcoming Mama, by Jeannie E. Roberts

My Mother's Garden, by Dorothy Embacher (Canada) 2021

Welcoming Mama 

Buoyed in blooms 
amid cantos of colour 
you doze near the crimson recital 
of poppies. 
As you rest 
adorned in blossoms 
and gossamer dress 
coneflower hums to the rhythmical thrums 
of a scarlet sage welcome. 
As melodies spill 
in the chromas of lemon and dill 
silvery tones fill hybrid tea rose 
in this garden of song. 
In Anisoptera style 
you pause in the fragrance awhile 
your wings echo the shine 
the light and sublime of your soul. 
In dragonfly form 
you’ve returned to the softness of norm 
to the garden you shaped 
poured faith and heed into loam. 
Buoyed in blooms 
amid cantos of colour 
you doze near the crimson recital 
of poppies. 
As you rest 
adorned in blossoms 
and gossamer dress 
coneflower hums to the rhythmical thrums 
of a scarlet sage welcome. 
As melodies spill 
in the chromas of lemon and dill 
silvery tones fill hybrid tea rose 
in this garden of song. 
Blossoms unite 
honor the rebirth of life 
cheer for you 
sing for you 
welcome you home!

Jeannie E. Roberts

Jeannie E. Roberts lives in Wisconsin, where she writes, draws and paints, and often photographs her natural surroundings. She’s authored seven books, five poetry collections and two illustrated children's books. Her newest collection, As If Labyrinth - Pandemic Inspired Poems, was released by Kelsay Books in April of 2021. Her poems appear in Anti-Heroin Chic, Blue Heron Review, Sky Island Journal, The Ekphrastic Review, and elsewhere. She’s an animal lover, a nature enthusiast, Best of the Net award nominee, and a poetry editor of the online literary magazine Halfway Down the Stairs. 

Dorothy Embacher is a visual artist from Meaford, Ontario. Her creations are influenced by the waters of Georgian Bay and the woodlands of the Niagara Escarpment. Dorothy works in a variety of media, including painting, printmaking and collage. Her process is intuitive, shaped by poetry, personal experience, and collaboration, inspiring art from poetry, poetry from art, with a deeply environmental perspective. She has exhibited at Meaford Arts and Cultural Hall, Owen Sound Banner Project, and the 2020 International Telephone Game. Her latest work will be featured in the 608 Exhibition, to bring attention to 608 trees that may be destroyed by developers.