Luscious Lilacs

I came to the garden today with Claudia Coutu-Radmore, an Ottawa poet and editor of the recently released Arctic Twilight (Blue Butterfly Books). Claudia is a member of Ottawa's Kado haiku group and is the person who initially inspired me to take up tanka. I couldn't think of a better poet to share the splendour of the lilac garden at its peak.

Here's a photo of Claudia, notebook in hand, among the lilacs.

today my words

are lilac tinted

and dipped in scent
Angela

each lilac showing me

what I do not know

about lilacs

Claudia

The lilac garden is located inside the Montreal Botanical Garden right before The Flowery Brook. It contains quite a number of well established bushes. Each bush has its own fragrance and it's difficult to resist the urge to stop and inhale deeply at each one.

from lilac to lilac

being draggged

by my nose
Claudia


with a friend
in the lilac garden
surrounded
by beauty and fragrance
we are wallflowers at the ball
Angela




on the yellow center
of a lilac flower
centering myself
Claudia

in my childhood
lilacs always grew
in other people's yards--
never the giver
nor the receiver
Angela




There are all shades of lilac in the garden, from darkest purple to pure white.

drawn to the lilacs
of the most intense hues
flowers that distil purple
that hoard
white
Claudia

lilacs
under a deep blue sky
for once
it's not just me
taking things to the limit
Angela





as if to make up
for its rough-barked trunk
this lilac bush
exploding in lush
soft purple
Claudia


if I marry again
I'll carry purple lilacs
and not worry
too much
what I wear
Angela



letting go
of my thoughts
to smell the lilacs
I'll forget for the moment
all the things I can't do
Angela


choosing to remain a victim
assaulted
by the scent of lilacs
Claudia



a sprinkling
of lilac flowers on the grass
our shadows
move in and out
of abundance and loss
Angela





so difficult
to leave them
so hard to fight
the purple gravity
of lilacs
Claudia



I certainly enjoyed writing in the garden with Claudia. Hopefully this is just the first of many such poetic rendez-vous at the Montreal Botanical Garden. But the lilac garden at the height of bloom is undoubtedly one of the growing season's highlights. There's nothing as luscious as lilacs!

daring the poets
to make them last forever
these lilacs
Claudia

if there is
an art to love--
lilacs
full of fragrance
against a powder-blue sky
Angela



P.S. Here are two last poems, I couldn't help including.

like these white lilacs
we are so often
at our best
because of our dark
backgrounds
Claudia

I'll sit
among the lilacs
in this patch of sun
not minding at all
if you're late
Angela