March Blizzard
Moonsheen on lake glows pallid,
tornado crystals swirl and plummet
into rising drifts.
Budding redbud weeps fuchsia,
dogwood limbs wail in gale-force wind,
crack under snow’s persistence.
We huddle by woodburning stove,
fire the only sign of human presence,
cabin an outpost of resilience.
As a white dragon
the lake slithers past,
gathering snow’s menace.
Relentless Snowmaster
whips forest into submission,
slashes pines to their knees.
Dawn brings quiet, impasse.
Snow blocks the road out.
How can we escape each other?
Willowwind
April zephyr in March blast
pale willow tresses blow sharp
against crystal-ball sky
Willowwind kisses my hair
Forsythia laughs itself yellow
with sunshine
Sycamore raises
blanched arms to unheeding sky
Willowwind flutters my face
Late winter—expectant season
between dark of winter solstice
and dawn of vernal equinox--
death and life
life in death
Willowwind twirls me in a dervish dance
Evanescent froth of chartreuse
greening winter to spring
Late winter--
Winging Whirling Willowwind
After receiving her Ph.D. in French Literature from UNC-Chapel Hill, Diane M. Williams taught French language and literature for many years and spent an academic year as a Fulbright Exchange Teacher in France. After moving to Knoxville, she joined the creative team at the UT Knoxville Office of Communications and Marketing as an editorial project manager, writing and editing recruiting materials and research magazines. Diane attended Marilyn Kallet’s poetry workshop in Auvillar, France, and has poems in two online publications, One Trick Pony and Bluestem Magazine. She self-published a poetry chapbook, Night in the Garden, in 2020.
Moonsheen on lake glows pallid,
tornado crystals swirl and plummet
into rising drifts.
Budding redbud weeps fuchsia,
dogwood limbs wail in gale-force wind,
crack under snow’s persistence.
We huddle by woodburning stove,
fire the only sign of human presence,
cabin an outpost of resilience.
As a white dragon
the lake slithers past,
gathering snow’s menace.
Relentless Snowmaster
whips forest into submission,
slashes pines to their knees.
Dawn brings quiet, impasse.
Snow blocks the road out.
How can we escape each other?
Willowwind
April zephyr in March blast
pale willow tresses blow sharp
against crystal-ball sky
Willowwind kisses my hair
Forsythia laughs itself yellow
with sunshine
Sycamore raises
blanched arms to unheeding sky
Willowwind flutters my face
Late winter—expectant season
between dark of winter solstice
and dawn of vernal equinox--
death and life
life in death
Willowwind twirls me in a dervish dance
Evanescent froth of chartreuse
greening winter to spring
Late winter--
Winging Whirling Willowwind
After receiving her Ph.D. in French Literature from UNC-Chapel Hill, Diane M. Williams taught French language and literature for many years and spent an academic year as a Fulbright Exchange Teacher in France. After moving to Knoxville, she joined the creative team at the UT Knoxville Office of Communications and Marketing as an editorial project manager, writing and editing recruiting materials and research magazines. Diane attended Marilyn Kallet’s poetry workshop in Auvillar, France, and has poems in two online publications, One Trick Pony and Bluestem Magazine. She self-published a poetry chapbook, Night in the Garden, in 2020.
