Winter is a lean, scrappy fighter. Spring blossoms from the sweat of Winter’s brow.
—Terri Guillemets
Creativity Journal
Winter sparks
snowflakes fall from the sky
in peppermint perfection —
i kiss you with quivering lips
but cold is not the reason —
you set my winter heart on fire
and keep me warm all season
—Terri Guillemets
Work hard & shine!
Sometimes the universe tosses out handfuls of glittering opportunity. If it falls upon you, dance! Then get right to work.
—Terri Guillemets
Scraps
A scar is a memory from the scrapbook your body is keeping about you.
—Terri Guillemets
Love-beats
Hating withers your heart. Hearts that don’t pump love, atrophy.
—Terri Guillemets
Love & Be-Loved
You divide my soul into love and
—Terri Guillemets
Greens & things
good health, yes, is partly genes
really though it’s more about greens
and other types of healthful things
—Terri Guillemets
Spring is so —
Spring is so damn pink!
O yes, it’s vibrantly green
and greenly vibrant too—
reds burst, oranges blaze
yellows beam like the sun
violet dazzles vivid delight
blue paints the entire sky—
but the thing that thrills
my soul the most is that
Spring is so damn pink!
—Terri Guillemets
Kitty
Paws carry heart and fur,
Whiskers and vibrato purr.
—Terri Guillemets
Summer wonder
late June, monsoon — kaboom!
patter, splatter, fat drops gather
splats, taps, windowpane raps
wind whips, swish, whish —
summer’s rumbling thunder
flash, crash, lightning dash
plash, splash, sky unlashed!
—Terri Guillemets
Stone-faced
Wailing, bearing flowers
and collapsing to her knees,
her hot tears fall upon me—
But I remain unmoved,
stone-faced, above it all—
her face etched with grief
and mine with the years,
weathered with past life—
Gently she touches my face
and presents me the flowers—
I’ve seen her cry many times
but it is my nature to be
rough and cold, grounded
in reality I know nothing else—
Still she keeps coming back to me
and though I cannot give her love
I will always guard hers.
—Terri Guillemets
Calm in a cup
Tea is a magical calming elixir — like, as if coffee had a therapist.
—Terri Guillemets
The graceful and beauteous
Flowers rewrite soil, rain, and sunshine into petal’d poetry.
—Terri Guillemets
Wintermind
The color of springtime is in the flowers; the color of winter is in the imagination.
—Terri Guillemets
P.S. Thanks so much to everyone who let me know about USA Today and King Features Syndicate using this quote for their “Cryptoquote” on December 3rd. That’s pretty cool! They actually left out a small portion and quoted it as “The color of springtime is flowers; the color of winter is in the imagination.” —tg, 2022
Wilted
The past falls away in wilted petals,
New things will come, probably nettles.
—Terri Guillemets
Symbiotic
Death is not warden of life, not thief, nor enemy — but Life’s most equal partner.
—Terri Guillemets
Clock work
flowers don’t open to the clock
but to the sunshine spontaneous—
for modern humans that manner
of instinct is now extraneous
—Terri Guillemets
Listen to the colors
Purple is the soul-lifter
Red, the flame of passion
Yellow, the light of warmth
Green, vibrant stem of life
Pink, a whisper of beauty
Orange beckons, take a chance
Blue is the sea tide in us all
—Terri Guillemets
Aside
Sometimes imagination pounces; mostly it sleeps soundly in the corner, purring.
—Terri Guillemets
Explanatory
LIFE
is an artist insane
painting his way
with the world…
—Terri Guillemets
Lackluster
In the dark, glitter is nothing but sand.
—Terri Guillemets
It’s now
Don’t let the past steal your present.
—Terri Guillemets
Elderberry prime
Autumn birds speak cheerful poetry from their berry-stained beaks.
—Terri Guillemets
Good morning!
Dawn spreads her wispy pink angel wings over the morning.
—Terri Guillemets
Wordcloth
An author, behind his words, is naked.
—Terri Guillemets