...sweet be these moments... Beneath A Willow...

So delicate each leaf
So mighty your bough
Branches bend humbly
Yet strength be your vow
Waters in libation 
Winds in embrace
Under your majesty 
Beneath I in place
Seasons of change
Sun, moon a distant star
Listen I to all the secrets 
Whispers near and far.

Rose Marie Raccioppi

Poet Laureate

Orangetown, New York

The Lady of Shalott, John William Waterhouse, oil painting, 1888, Tate Gallery, London.

"...Down she came and found a boat 
Beneath a willow left afloat..."

The Lady of Shalott, 1833, poem, Alfred Lord Tennyson, 1809-1892.

Beneath A Willow

So delicate each leaf
So mighty your bough
Branches bend humbly
Yet strength be your vow
Waters in libation
Winds in embrace
Under your majesty
Beneath I in place
Seasons of change
Sun, moon a distant star
Listen I to all the secrets
Whispers near and far.

Rose Marie Raccioppi


The Lady of Shalott, John William Waterhouse, oil painting, 1888, Tate Gallery, London.

"...Down she came and found a boat
Beneath a willow left afloat..."

The Lady of Shalott, 1833, poem, Alfred Lord Tennyson, 1809-1892.

Each Bloom

Flowers in fields of green array
The warming touch of this summer day
God's gifts to be ever known
By the bounty of earth shown
In joyful reverence each bloom gifted new
God's love, praise and favor on to you.

Rose Marie Raccioppi


"Gather ye rosebuds while ye may", Oil on canvas, 1909, John William Waterhouse, 1849-1917.


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Sweet Summer

The thirst of trees, grass and flowers
Answered by days of Summer showers
Wet leaves and blooms glisten in the sun
So fresh this day with God's work done
The feel of grass now new below my feet
A gentle wind blows with fragrance sweet
Fountain waters in libation flowing free
Heed I to the rippling water, a symphony
A rose in bloom my hand to hold
Sweet Summer musings I enfold.

Rose Marie Raccioppi


Sweet Summer, Oil on canvas, 1912, John William Waterhouse, 1849-1917.


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The Inquest

Witness the inquest
A trial proceeding
the heart longing
the mind reflecting
the spirit searching
the soul awakened
And so life speaks
to itself and hungers
to be heard
What reverie shall we reveal
What lament shall we cry
What affirmation shall we hail
Witness the inquest
A trial proceeding.

Rose Marie Raccioppi


The Crystal Ball, 1902, Oil on canvas, John William Waterhouse, 1849–1917.

THE WIND AND THE WILLOW

Boreas

The North Wind calls its name

Within folds to hold its claim
Warp and weft of swaddling sublime
Wrap and enfold this moment mine.

Rose Marie Raccioppi


Boreas, Oil on canvas, 1903, John William Waterhouse, 1849-1917.

THE WORD

In sound and silence THE WORD now heard
In the sweet melody of the songbird
In the whisper of the wind upon leaf and bloom
In the warmth of sun this very noon
In sound and silence THE WORD now known
In all grace, love and beauty shown.

Rose Marie Raccioppi


Ophelia, 1894, Oil on canvas, John William Waterhouse, 1849-1917

The Spoils of Spring

Budding leaves of many hues
Reaching branches of the lofty oak tree
The quiver of dawning grass laden with Spring rain
Robins red of breast aflight in my garden near
Blooms of grace and brilliant white
The song of birds distant yet heard
The presence of soft winds and a gentle rain
The silent sounding of growth abound
Such be the spoils of Spring, this day found.

Rose Marie Raccioppi


Windflowers, 1903, Oil on canvas, John William Waterhouse, British, 1849 - 1917.

Words Like Roses

Words like roses

delicate

passionate

fragile

a lingering sentiment

that touches our heart

awakens our sensibilities

and in silence

our soul sublime.



Rose Marie Raccioppi


The Soul of the Rose, 1908, John William Waterhouse, 1849 – 1917.

Day’s End Impending

The sun yet brilliant in the west sky
Cooler now is the late afternoon air
Filled with the spent joy of this day
The grass fully shadowed
Blooms glisten in the setting light
A pause as I hold to this moment
Day's end impending
Suspended upon the horizon
Beauty timeless
Memory eternal.


Rose Marie Raccioppi


Day's End Impending, Rose Marie Raccioppi, THE WIND AND THE WILLOW, Publish America, 2008.

Ophelia, 1889, John William Waterhouse, 1849—1917, English.