Today’s guest poem was written by Ethelene Dyer Jones.
Thoughts on a Frosty Morning written by Ethelene Dyer Jones
“By the breath of God frost is given…” –Job 37:10 (KJV).
The grass edged in white
Is stiff beneath its load of hoar.
The crackle under foot
Makes me hurry to the door
And warmth inside.
As the landscape meets
The winter’s frigid blast,
Nature’s cycle, seeming to rest,
Is working, though not as fast,
To implement and guide.
Such symmetry, such perfection,
In one tiny molecule of frost!
Such design, such crystalline beauty
To spread abroad, exhaust
On one frosty morning sight!
Festooned like a mighty canopy.
These white-clad artistries bring
Strains like the beauty of a hymn.
The chill lifts soul to sing
In this moment in time—so right!
-Ethelene Dyer Jones
January 5, 2013
Inspired by Tipper Pressley’s
Blind Pig & the Acorn blog for today: “Frosty Morning”
——————-
I hope you enjoyed Ethelene’s poem as much as I did! It is a perfect fit for the frosty cold mornings we’ve had this week in western NC.
Tipper
18 Comments
Tamela
November 15, 2013 at 8:13 amLovely poem. Lovely and poetic responses.
Ethelene Dyer Jones
November 14, 2013 at 3:32 pmDear, dear Tipper!
You are one, who I think, as I, enjoy “saving.” Until you reminded me again here, I had forgotten that I wrote “Thoughts on a Frosty Morning” on January 5, 2013 after reading your blog that cold day.
I appreciate and read with deep interest all the comments. I love words, love how they crowd pell-mell into my mind begging expression. The late Dr. Bettie Sellers, excellent poet and wonderful friend, once told my class of high school students that she awakened many mornings with a poem sitting on her bedpost begging to be written! Whether on our bedpost when we’re newly from sleep or inspired after seeing beauty so intricate and fascinating as frost on grass or new-fallen leaves on forest floor, it is excellent if we can capture the moment of beauty and inspiration with words. Then we can remember and reflect upon the sight long after it passes from view. Thank you for this post! Thank you–one and all–for the joy and love you spread abroad through this means of sharing. How insightful Don Casada’s words that tell us, even as the “scores plus tens” of years accumulate for us in our span on earth, we can still appreciate beauty and assimilate joy! Don wrote:
“As years accumulate, this season brings wonder and joy.
The trees are not barren–but bare–shed of makeup and pretense.
In stark beauty, they sing hymns in a minor key.” (Don, these lines are mightily insightful, poetic and the lines are indeed keepers!)
Thank you, one and all. Enjoy the beauty of the frost–and all the panoply of nature which is there for our seeing and enjoyment!
Bradley
November 14, 2013 at 3:27 pmSomeone said earlier that Ethelene had painted a scene with words. I have always thought Ethelene was to poetry what Rembrandt was to painting. I actually met her once at a Byron Herbert Reece Society Meeting at Young Harris College! She has won so many awards for her poetry over the years. Mrs Ethelene Dyer Jones you sure know how to get it said! Like everyone else today, I thoroughly enjoyed your words today.
Joy Newer
November 14, 2013 at 1:07 pmGod has blessed you well Ethelene and blessed us with the giving. Thank you Tipper giving us all the opportunity to read this beautiful poem.
Ken Roper
November 14, 2013 at 11:54 amTipper,
Ethelene sure does a fine job with
words of Praise. She and my friend
Jim Casada are truly blessed with
ways of expression when it comes to
Nature.
I love these frosty mornings like
this when the wind is still, makes
me want to go Deer Hunting…Ken
b. Ruth
November 14, 2013 at 11:46 amTipper,
Aren’t words the most beautiful thang when put together in the right sequence by the inspired poet!
I feel it and my toes are in my slippers…LOL
Thanks Ethelene, “beautiful”!
Also comment by Don and others..
dolores
November 14, 2013 at 11:28 amSuch good fun reading and imagining your picturesque sights! This was a great read for a cold, crispy morning.
Ken Ryan
November 14, 2013 at 10:41 amI loved Ethelene’s poem! I wish I could come up with such words. I also loved Don’s response! I’ve soaked up beautiful words this morning, and I am thankful.
Annette Casada Hensley
November 14, 2013 at 10:18 amLovely, inspiring poem. Thanks for sharing. Here in Michigan, our ground is still white after getting over a foot of beautiful, pure white snow earlier in the week. Today we’re blessed with Carolina blue skies and a warm-up reminding us that there’s always something beautiful in the natural world God provides.
Ed Ammons
November 14, 2013 at 10:13 amDo you ever notice the white shadows on the ground, when the sun comes up in morning and burns away all the frost except that which hides behind trees and fence posts?
james gentry
November 14, 2013 at 9:46 amWonderful!
Shirla
November 14, 2013 at 8:58 amWhat a beautiful poem, Ethelene. It’s almost as if you painted a picture with each verse.
The man who leases my cropland told me he had to wait for frost to help dry out the soybeans before he could harvest them. I didn’t know that! I thought frost would only make them hold more moisture. He explained how frost flowers are formed from moisture drawn from surrounding plants.
Ron Banks
November 14, 2013 at 8:15 amA very appropriate poem on this frosty morning. It is 23 at the foot of Oglethorpe Mountain this morning. The sun is bright, the deer are wandering across the back yard and one little bird is singing his praise to Lord for such a beautiful morning!
Judy Mincey
November 14, 2013 at 7:50 amI would love to meet Miiss Ethelene. She and I are distantly connected by marriage. And I love her poetry. One day I’ll get my cousin to take me to one of the Dyer get togethers.
I love the frost and the elegant designs it makes. My granddaddy always said, “It’s good for the ground.”
Carol
November 14, 2013 at 7:28 amJust beautiful!
Miss Cindy
November 14, 2013 at 7:27 amThat’s perfect! It’s today, twenty degrees, cold, crisp, and God given beauty.
Thanks Ethelene!
Sheryl Paul
November 14, 2013 at 7:17 amWhat a beautiful poem.
Don Casada
November 14, 2013 at 7:08 amWhat a lovely, creation and Creator-inspired piece, Ethelene.
In younger days, the coming of frost brought the solace of colors in leaves and a season of hunting.
As years accumulate, this season brings wonder and joy. The trees are not barren but bare – shed of makeup and pretense. In stark beauty, they sing hymns in a minor key.