The Three Daughters of Summer

 

Three daughters of summer stand strong
Like unshadowed pillars of stone
Against the impatient rushing of seasons
The arms of Spring reach into May
With stretching budding tendrils
While the leafy twines of Autumn 
Stretch back into Augusts windy days
Does that leave much in between?

June comes first without introduction
With the first moments of warmth so bright
She is the fairest and youngest of them
And I could not welcome her more
The pleasant days that she brings
Playing with gentle ripples of breeze
Her sunlight hair dancing in the trees
But was she really here at all?

Then July her serious older sister
Right in the middle of the passing year
At the height of the summer long
She brings an inescapable heat
The clouds are only futile attempts
Nothing more, faint wispy and white
The merest of impressions
Brush strokes on a drying palette

Finally August the most uncertain
She is sad by the first of the leaves
That are turning colour ready to fall
Keeping Septembers zephyrs at bay
It becomes harder every day it seems
The world has turned against her
No more girls basking in the Sun
With an unstoppable heat in them

And later in an English Winter fire
My mind will so naturally return
To the happy thoughts of you three
Dancing around my garden green
A day here and there that was
Such a dazzling example of you
How I long for your return
To warm my aching bones

Reviews

[Fabian G. Franklin]

What a pleasant journey through the warm months leading up to the warmth of a fire in winter. I certainly relate to the desire for late Spring and summer to return. We are in the rainy cold season here and my arthritis and bursitis feel every fluctuation of the cold in my aching bones and joints. Only a heating pad brings relief. I enjoyed the read.

[Marvin Thomas Cox-Flynn..]

Leigh,

I truly enjoyed reading and immersing myself in deep contemplative thoughts of all I saw and treasure within this beautiful piece of your heart set to pen of page ...

Having lost my wife of 49 years a bit over a year ago, I found the panoramic images of your poetry sweeping me back in time, a far better place in time than is now, as I meditated upon how I thought we (she & I) would both end our lives, and that, somehow peacefully and not suffocating to death from COVID that I endured four times, but could not manage to die ... I thought of a poem I wrote for her one day as I realized that all children love their mothers, but they all, also of each and every one, take their mothers for granted, and so I wrote my first poem for her, She Never Gave It A Thought (https://www.writerscafe.org/writing/FlynndeGraham/2822256/)

Reading your heart's quill scrawled upon page, nothing held back, I was truly swept back, as I so wished that my wife could be living your poem and not lying in her grave in San Angelo, Texas ...

You are blessed, therefore, live in bliss of all the fond memories that you shall always treasure ...

I sip my coffee, this fine morning in Smalltown, Texas, and I have had quite an emotional chuckle of memories relived, revived, old times come alive, though some cut like a knife ... Thank you so much for sharing ...

Marvin Thomas Cox-Flynn de Graham

[Leigh]

Thank you, I am glad this poetry helped you. I am sorry about your wife

[willweb]

Oh my Leigh, this was beautiful, so creative and clever. I had such fun reading this and to picture the seasons with their different personalities shining, so wonderful. And then to look below at some of the folks who commented previously to see so many old friends I haven't seen in years and then on the last page Ruth. I know she passed away several years ago and that was very sad, she was one of my favorites on here. So thank you for the beautiful poem and the look back.

[Leigh]

Thank you for taking the time to review, yes, this one is quite old now :-)

[Isimbabi]

An impressive take on personification. I loved June but I felt sad for August as I likened her to people who suffer the repercussions for the actions of those that came before them.
This was my interpretation of the poem as I read it :)
-I

[Coyote Poetry]

I enjoyed this poem. It is outstanding. You described the change of season with skill and beauty. Thank you for sharing the outstanding poetry.
Coyote

[Cyndi Goodgame]

I just loved this poem. Vivid imagery at its best. It warmed and chilled me all at the right moments!

[Aethereal]

This is a wonderful personification of Summer. It seems that you have added three more goddesses to the Greek Pantheon June, July, and August. You have perfectly differentiated each from the others. Zeus now has three more daughters. That Norwegian god, Thor, has been dating July where I live bringing thunderstorms.

[Kwiksie Ifediora]

leigh? i wanna be like u when i grow up. ^_^
this piece would make anyone yearn for summer! It's descriptive nature, imagery and heck yeah the personification, totally trip me. Merci!

[annabellee]

that is such a creative and original idea - the three daughters of summer, simply brilliant. I loved how you described every single one of them and gave them their own character.
Enjoyed it a lot :)