“April Fools”

By Ron Jevaltas

 

 

April Fools

 

And yet, despite the
hour and the timbre of the
dark, it lies softly

How suddenly precious it’s been

on the shoulders of
spring: a shawl, a counterpane,
the resurrection

to have you so near these somber thoughts.

of a billion souls
with little hope of staying
out the week. Must I

White has not lost power over man,

celebrate alone
the silent beating of so
many aching hearts?

is not excluded from what’s been wrought.

Running out of time,
the evanescent sally
into light has no

Each of us has a stone to roll out;

chance to grow. I will
champion this sliver of
winter while others

each of us has little time to mend;

curse; and bless the time
spent with the saddest season,
the one so like death.

each to all our ragged volleys bend.

 

 

 

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Ron is a phenological poet. Many of his two thousand poems present as haiku journal entries. He is in his 41st  and final year as an educator. This year he has had two selections appear in “Font,” a literary journal devoted to showcasing language teachers.