Author Archives: Roger Gosden
Blackbird Migration
It is mid-February after the coldest weeks I can remember in south-east Virginia. Our summer visitors are still wintering in balmier latitudes; they won’t fly north for another month, but some locals are on the move.A cloud of Common Grackles … Continue reading
The Chill of ICE
I dash from the porch and promptly do battle with ice,Stagger to join rows of bundled-up neighbors, gentle as mice,They stamp frozen feet and wave with woolly mittsSlogans on floppy placards, too chill to move lips,And dream of springtime to … Continue reading
The Afterlife of a Beekeeper – an ode
I lost my beekeeper buddy a week ago and wondered how to leave a tribute for her. This is my timid offering, celebrating the continuity of life. The brood snuggled down against the dark,Since she sealed hive boxes tight as … Continue reading
Paying back Spain in kind with Red Kites
Red Kites were familiar sights in London in Shakespeare’s day. He mentioned them in several plays, but not always with compliments. The Winter’s Tale tells a complaint that “My traffic is sheets; when the kits builds, look to lesser linen.”They … Continue reading
Job in the Whirlwind at the End of his World
William Blake was a poet, painter, printmaker, mystic, and, I vouch, a protoenvironmentalist. His painting: Job Confessing his Presumption to God, who answers in a Whirlwind, represents the crisis of his life. Job had a great life with his large … Continue reading







