It starts with an ephemeral puff
of delicate seed-heads in a child’s hand,
waiting for the wind, hitchhikers
free to take sunshine wherever they land.
A dandelion may start life
as a fragile seed, a tickle in a downy clock
a drifter on a breeze,
but it can crumble paving stones and rock
and, before you know it,
suddenly a thousand golden faces appear,
granted wishes from every
puffball blown by children year on year,
and romantic grown-ups too,
star-gazers like me and you.
Kim M. Russell, 22nd April 2020
My response to Imaginary Garden with Real Toads NaPoWriMo Day 22 Play it Again in April 2020: Poets of April
On Sunday, April 22, 2018, Susie offered us inspiration from poets born in April, quotations accompanied by images.
The challenge is to let the quotations lead to poetry, writing in any form or no form at all.
As I’m merging this prompt with Kerry’s Skylover Wordlist, sourced from Dylan Thomas’s poetry collection Deaths and Entrances, from which the twenty-second word is ‘seed’, I had to choose the quotation from William Jay Smith: “ A fresh and vigorous weed, always renewed and renewing, it will cut its wondrous way through rubbish and rubble.”.
writing in north norfolk 
and, before you know it,
suddenly a thousand golden faces appear
I love this moment in your poem! Everything about the piece is wonderful, and I especially love the quote you chose.
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Thank you so much, Kerry!
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This is absolutely beautiful, Kim! 😍😍 I love; “suddenly a thousand golden faces appear,” and the fact that it applies to romantic people like us who wish upon them! 💝🌳
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Thank you kindly, Sanaa! 🙂
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LOVE your poem Kim – it’s oh so lyrical and just perfect – but then, I think Dandelions are just perfection! Absolute. Delight.
so let us continue to wish, dream and blow the puffs!
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Thank you so much, Pat!
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Beautiful, Kim. I too love those “thousand golden faces,” watching us and they watching us.
Dandelions were the first bouquets that I picked. Followed by purple violets. And like most kids loved blowing the dandelion seeds into the breezes.
..
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A bunch of dandelions sounds perfect, Jim.
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Those golden faces are always a welcome sight. (K)
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This is lovely❣️I enjoy every line. 🙏
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Thank you kindly, Linda!
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My sweetest Kim, you’ve made me smile twice today. I never thought of myself as a romantic stargazer, but… if after reading your reasoning, I totally am!
And I love the second stanza, the way it looks like the stunning threat.
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Thank you, Magaly! I’m so pleased my poem made you smile.
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I love dandelions. You so beautiful express the glory of the winsome weed.
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Thank you, Susie. I like ‘winsome weed’!
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Ah, what a delight! Always a treat to meet fellow lovers of dandelions – of which it seems there are many. 🙂
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Thank you, Rosemary! 🙂
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I love best the same lines Kerry quoted, those thousand golden faces. Beautiful.
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I love best the same lines Kerry quoted, those thousand golden faces. Beautiful.
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LOVE it Kim! Most especially the last 6 lines. I must admit, on our walk today, I saw the first two dandelions of the spring season for me, on a condo lawn across the river where we walk, and I just grinned and pleased as a little kid, said to my husband, “Look! Dandelions!” I’ve never thought of them as weeds. My dad sure did though! 🙂
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Thank you, Lill! The last six lines are my favourites too! 🙂
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