Green blankets the earth

sweet blades of gentle grass 
like hair brushing the bottoms of my feet
shades of green flood my vision:
Pines, evergreen, maple, shrub, dogwood

The seasons move me to the page 
to write, to poetry
The ink scratches across 
lined paper like a well-manicured lawn 

now dented and clumped from small children’s feet 
playing in the garden 
rejoicing in the sun 
as carefree as can be

The neighbors’ dogs bellow and bark 
the calm serene lazy green scene 
is shattered with shrill and boom 
oh, how I used to curse the dogs 
and their loud incessant pitch

They too are creatures of the earth 
and innocent of their own plight and cries 
for play and attention
I take the cue and turn inward

to play on the page with a small smile 
on my lips -- no sour or annoyance today 
for Green blankets the earth 
and I am a child of nature.