Happy Friday, everyone! It doesn’t seem possible that we’re halfway through National Poetry Month already! Naomi Shihab Nye tells us that “poems hide.” I think that hope can be hidden, too. We just have to learn how to see it.
Today I’m sharing a slightly altered version of a poem that was recently published in The Birmingham Arts Journal. Thank you, Irene Latham, for encouraging me to submit my poems to BAJ! Although it was written long before I thought of this project, hope is woven into every line.
L is for Hope
Why?
Because…
a decaying leaf
stripped of its
lamina, transformed
into a transparent
filigree of fibers
is tucked into
a house finch’s nest
cushioning speckled
eggs, tiny as thimbles.
Drained of chlorophyll,
brown as the dirt
it will soon become, the leaf
tumbles on a gust of wind
to the ground
where earthworms
will burrow and nibble
away at the remnants
of once sturdy xylem,
casting its remains
aside.
Decomposed into soil,
it waits, silent and still,
for heart roots to
absorb its nutrients,
sustaining a stand of beeches,
powering hungry new leaves.
© Catherine Flynn, 2023
Please be sure to visit Jone Rush MacCulloch at her blog for the Poetry Friday Roundup.
Previous NPM Posts:
Day 1: H is for…
Day 2: A is for Hope
Day 3: B is for Hope
Day 4: C is for Hope
Day 5: D is for Hope
Day 6: E is for Hope
Day 7: F is for Hope
Day 8: G is for Hope
Day 9: Hope is
Day 10: I is for Hope
Day 11: J is for Hope
Day 12: Hope is…
Reading to the Core 
Love this poem all science-y and still lovely. Your poetry month is admirable…look at all the words!
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[…] Day 1: H is for…Day 2: A is for HopeDay 3: B is for HopeDay 4: C is for HopeDay 5: D is for HopeDay 6: E is for HopeDay 7: F is for HopeDay 8: G is for HopeDay 9: Hope isDay 10: I is for HopeDay 11: J is for HopeDay 12: Hope is…Day 13: L is for Hope […]
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It’s so lovely, Catherine, this journey of a leaf you’re showing in your poem, definitely “hope”. Congratulations for the publication, too!
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[…] is for HopeDay 9: Hope isDay 10: I is for HopeDay 11: J is for HopeDay 12: Hope is…Day 13: L is for HopeDay 14: M is for […]
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Catherine, the life that a leaf continues to give is Hope defined. Brava! And congratulations on the publication!
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Congratulations on your recent publication. That’s exciting news!
Your poem takes us on a delightful adventure in the life of a leaf. Right now, I am enamored by the green leaves beginning to fill the branches on our trees. They have quite an adventure ahead.
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[…] is for HopeDay 9: Hope isDay 10: I is for HopeDay 11: J is for HopeDay 12: Hope is…Day 13: L is for HopeDay 14: M is for HopeDay 15: N is for […]
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I have a new way of looking at leaves. Gorgeous imagery.
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[…] is for HopeDay 9: Hope isDay 10: I is for HopeDay 11: J is for HopeDay 12: Hope is…Day 13: L is for HopeDay 14: M is for HopeDay 15: N is for HopeDay 16: More Poems of […]
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[…] is for HopeDay 9: Hope isDay 10: I is for HopeDay 11: J is for HopeDay 12: Hope is…Day 13: L is for HopeDay 14: M is for HopeDay 15: N is for HopeDay 16: More Poems of HopeDay 17: Q is for […]
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[…] is for HopeDay 9: Hope isDay 10: I is for HopeDay 11: J is for HopeDay 12: Hope is…Day 13: L is for HopeDay 14: M is for HopeDay 15: N is for HopeDay 16: More Poems of HopeDay 17: Q is for HopeDay 18: […]
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[…] is for HopeDay 9: Hope isDay 10: I is for HopeDay 11: J is for HopeDay 12: Hope is…Day 13: L is for HopeDay 14: M is for HopeDay 15: N is for HopeDay 16: More Poems of HopeDay 17: Q is for HopeDay […]
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