May 29, 2015

Poetry Friday: A Carolina Goose Haiku

Thanks to Margaret at Reflections on the Teche for hosting Poetry Friday this week!


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Last week, as I walked along the trail at Riverwalk (a river-front park on the Catawba River), I was struck by how many geese I saw. They were scattered on the rocks alongside the turtles that dominate that portion of the river, squawking away. When I visited a friend’s lakefront house a few evenings later, I saw a sweet family of geese scooting across the twilight-blue surface. I commented that they must be ready to head back “up north” soon, but my friend said that these geese live on the lake year round. 

Curious, I did some research and discovered that, despite my belief that all geese fly south for the winter and north for the summer, there are actually large populations that reside in the Carolinas year round. According to the SC Department of Natural Resources, “South Carolina is home to three distinct populations of Canada geese at various times of the year. Two groups of migratory geese are found in South Carolina only during the fall and winter in addition to resident geese which remain in the state year-round.” Which explains why I see geese around here all year long, both out in the country and hanging out at local ponds, parks, and parking lots. (Click here to read more.)
Image courtesy of http://www.dreamstime.com/

Inspired by my goose-related thoughts, I decided to write a haiku to share for Poetry Friday this week. Haiku is one of my favorite poetic forms because it takes an up-close, focused snapshot of its subject, and is most often about nature, which I happen to love. (To read more about haiku poetry, click here.) Here is my Carolina goose haiku: 
With spread wings, geese launch,
Swoop low, then take flight into    
Carolina blue.

Have a wonderful weekend and Happy Writing!

10 comments:

  1. That's funny, Becky -- I was just at Keri's blog, where she writes about geese, and then at Gathering Books, which had a bird poem that made me think about geese, and then I came here! It's a goose-y day. I like your word choices (especially "launch" and "swoop").

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  2. "...take flight into/Carolina blue." Such a beautiful image. Connecticut now has geese who stay throughout the summer, but when I was a kid, I only remember them stopping by in the fall. Thanks for sharing!

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    1. I used to see geese only a few times a year, too...I think this is why these geese caught my attention!

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  3. Ooh, I like it! We have geese that I'm pretty sure stay year round too. We do have some cold winters sometimes, but I'm sure nothing like Canada! This reminds me of last month, when we were waiting in the drive thru at Steak n Shake. There was a goose nesting in a landscaped area over in the CVS parking lot. Seems like it'll be a crazy place to have babies!

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    1. I have seen whole flocks (gaggles??) of geese in parking lots around here. It is definitely a strange sight!

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  4. When I saw the black necks of the geese in this photo, I thought of Jackson, a black-necked swan, the subject of a poem by Libby Martinez. We couldn't find a good illustration of a black-necked swan for our PoetryCelebrations website, so you'll see a white swan for Libby's poem (see the bottom of this page: http://www.poetrycelebrations.com/june/). I love the way you named the blue "Carolina blue." Instead of a "Carolina blue" background, Jackson's background would be "Philadelphia Zoo blue"!

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    1. I love Libby's poem, "Jackson." I especially like the lines, "Some people think/animals are just animals..." For some reason, this wrenches my heart just a bit. Animals are so much more than just "animals!" Thanks so much for sharing, Janet!

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  5. Becky,
    I enjoyed your Carolina blue description. Your research led you to a great poetry writing experience.

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