morning light
forms part of a cross
on the wood wall
my faith completes
the picture
Ellen Grace Olinger
February 2013
1,000 Posts Review
morning light
forms part of a cross
on the wood wall
my faith completes
the picture
Ellen Grace Olinger
February 2013
1,000 Posts Review
IT IS IMPORTANT
To have a vision
to sustain the effort
to see it all the way
through – –
Even when it seems
to leave you
It Is Important was published first in Time Of Singing. The poem has found many homes.
I included this poem in my first chapbook, And So My Soul (2001, out of print).
Ellen Grace Olinger
quiet life
the only life
I can live
want to live
wild roses
and windmills
on country roads
Images: Reusable Art
Poems From Oostburg, Wisconsin
PETALS ON WOOD
The day lilies in the vase
Are ending
Petals drop on wood
I leave them
They express something poignant
That words never could.
*
Ellen Grace Olinger
ARTS ALIVE: A LITERARY REVIEW (1988)
The Tinley Park – Park District
Illinois
*
tree branches
and grey-white sky
a bowl of soup
and giving thanks
list of things to do
but not this moment
Ellen Grace Olinger
The ripples of a life:
Your black iris hangs
In my study–
(the walls are grey and
you would approve);
How could you know the beauty
You would bring into our lives
You, who painted flowers
big to make us see–
Intensity of color to
Mirror intensity of soul,
And, having found
Expression, tranquility of
Soul.
You couldn’t have known, not truly.
You were simply working hard,
Faithful to what you saw.
You painted your way
And your passing grieves me.
*
by Ellen Grace Olinger
Published in HARD ROW TO HOE, Reviews From Rural America (Winter 1994, Vol III).
The print referred to is from a showing of O’Keeffe’s work at The Madison Art Center: Paintings 1919 – 1977. March 3 – April 29, 1984.