Mosaic of Gray by Patricia McCue

 

Phil Evenden

Mosaic of Gray

The Burren, Ireland

Stretched out on a slab of limestone, 

I see boulders scattered 

as if a giant’s game of marbles was cut short.

Listening closely, I hear chatter in the wind.

Could lie here forever and dream.

Between the massive stones

purple wildflowers emerge,

glorious in their achievement.

A lone snail, cloaked in mother-of-pearl

glides across the karst landscape.

Is she headed to the famine road,

echoes of a dark chapter,

or back to the safety of a fissure?

In this tranquil place, I feel inspired to create

another lasting impression…a tune.

An ode to the Burren,

a mosaic of gray on a verdant island.

© Patricia McCue

Enjoy other posts by Patricia McCue HERE.

Patricia McCue

Patricia McCue is a retired teacher of middle school science. Her poems have appeared in Woods Reader, Poetry Breakfast, Nature of Our Times, and various anthologies.  In her free time, she studies and plays Traditional Irish Music on the violin.

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Lisheen’s Garden by Patricia McCue

Irina Iriser

Lisheen’s Garden

Lisheen, 

Grandma from Sligo,

who put down roots in

Brooklyn, then the Bronx,

always had a beautiful garden.

 

On her small city lot,

under the clothesline,

rows of zinnias,

orange, pink, and yellow,

patiently waited for shears,

bouquet-ready.

 

White roses, not so willing,

clung to her silver chain link fence,

a fragrant welcome.

 

Columbine was 

her perennial favorite,

lush and unassuming,

a perfect ground cover,

green with flecks of purple.

It reminded her of back home.

 

I once helped her plant

a large cotton mat

embedded with wildflower seeds.

We watered it, waited 

and watched as blooms

emerged -

a proud moment for ten-year-old me 

in Lisheen’s garden.

© Patricia McCue

Enjoy other posts by Patricia McCue HERE.

Patricia McCue

Patricia McCue is a retired teacher of middle school science. Her poems have appeared in Woods Reader, Poetry Breakfast, Nature of Our Times, and various anthologies.  In her free time, she studies and plays Traditional Irish Music on the violin.

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Call and Response by Patricia McCue

 

SHVETS production

Call and Response

 

Trills and whistles at first light.

Are there patterns in this music?

A secret language

or just the sound of joy?

 

Each summer musicians gather 

to learn ancient tunes passed on by ear 

from our ancestors.

 

Mountains covered in fleeting clouds -

a fitting backdrop for fiddle music.

 

As the sun approaches its high point

early morning birdsong evolves

into a more muted soundtrack

accompanied by an audible breeze.

 

There is beauty in simplicity.

A basic jig, unadorned,

rivals more complicated reels.

A song sparrow of muted colors

has one of the sweetest calls.

 

“Let’s start with a jig,

a lovely old tune.”

He plays a phrase.

Fingers move deftly across strings.

We answer - not quite there.

 

“And again.”

We mimic his call.

Catbirds in a circle defending a nest.

 

The exchange continues.

From fiddles and assorted beaks,

exquisite notes soar in unison 

carried Home by the weeping willow.

This poem was first published in Otherwise Engaged: A Literature and Arts Journal (Volume 12)

© Patricia McCue

Enjoy other posts by Patricia McCue HERE.

Patricia McCue

Patricia McCue is a retired teacher of middle school science. Her poems have appeared in Woods Reader, Poetry Breakfast, Nature of Our Times, and various anthologies.  In her free time, she studies and plays Traditional Irish Music on the violin.

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