Like Lichen

Like Lichen

LIke lichen is like an ear is like
some leaves
is how I love you–it’s just the shape
nature makes in me.

Like a fern is like a fir, like any tree truly,
like the dendrites that bring feeling
to a hand or body,
like the fingers of that hand, the limbs
of that body–
a shape nature makes–

like a nut, an egg,
like a planet, a seed, a heart–

like a riverbed or tributary,
like roots, like lightning,
like the capillaries that traverse
even stone–

the shape nature makes in me,
the love for you. 

 

****************

A love poem for Thanksgiving and my prompt on With Real Toads.  Check out my most recent book if you have a chance.  Momoir, Maybe, available on Amazon.  (Or a host of children’s books.) 

And many thanks!  

 

Explore posts in the same categories: poetry

Tags: , , , , ,

You can comment below, or link to this permanent URL from your own site.

14 Comments on “Like Lichen”


  1. I almost wrote about nature, too. I love all of the references in your beautiful poem, and how each shape is the shape of love. Wonderful.

  2. oldegg Says:

    Yes, seeing the beauty in all of creation is a most satisfying thing. If only we could all remember to look after it.

  3. Jim Says:

    Your list of Mother Nature’s treasures likened to ‘your’ love seens very unique to me, K. I am used to the moon, the stars, the incessant work of the tides, or other monumental works. But these are smallish and subtile. So I read being pleasantly surprised by the progression as I passed by.
    Thank you for the nice prompt. Though not the caliber or intensity of the traditional love story I had to write of my daughter and wife getting Toto. That idea came after seeing your adorable picture of the little girl holding her dog.
    ..

  4. annell4 Says:

    A lovely poem, nature and love, the poet can’t miss!

  5. Kerry Says:

    is how I love you–it’s just the shape
    nature makes in me.

    These lines alone are worth the wait for your poetry, Karin. This is so touching and beautiful.

  6. grapeling Says:

    beautiful, Karin ~


  7. I love how you use the similes stacked to come to the core of the love… the shapes, the emotions… I felt like open up a Russian doll with the layers of nature similes and finding a gem of love inside… so very cool.

  8. Helen Says:

    Lucky the person who knows deep inside he/she is shaped by nature. This is a lovely write, Karin.

  9. Marian Says:

    Just love this, Karin. Love the rhythm and how this sounds and feels. Vintage Karin, like Kerry said, worth waiting for.
    Congrats on your new book and I have to catch up on your collection!! Much love to you. Marian

  10. Brendan Says:

    Similes yielding smiles like few I have known. This is a wonderful little poem–all the ways love is what nature does.

  11. Just Barry Says:

    “is how I love you–it’s just the shape
    nature makes in me.”

    I love everything about this. The common-sense, self-evident shape of your love… lovely.


I'd love to hear from you!

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Log Out /  Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. Log Out /  Change )

Connecting to %s

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.


%d bloggers like this: