Garden Bloggers' Muse Day

Poetry in the Garden

In Chinese and Korean gardens there are 5 important elements :  Water , which equals life, plants and trees which are nature's clothing, rocks and stones, earth's strength , architecture, the foundation and poetry that reflects the joys of nature.

Traditional Chinese poems, called couplets, consists of two lines .  For example :

10,000 flowers

dare to blossom in the snow

Spring. A single tree leads the world in greeting

In the beautiful Huwon Garden of Cheongduk Palace, home to 13 Korean Kings, a boulder in the Ongnyucheon  ( Jade ) stream is inscribed with the following poem written by one of them in the 16th century  :

The stream flows away endlessly

  the waterfall plummets down from the sky

these remind me of a white rainbow, thunder and light flooding the valley.

Sijo, an ancient form of Korean poetry which uses three lines, was styled after the Chinese and is similar to the Japanese Haiku, but much older.

It is said that the King and his cohorts would float cups of wine down the Jade stream and the recepient had to compose a poem or song before it reached them.  No easy task.

April is national poetry month.  Gardens have made poets hearts sing since the beginning of time. Mine is no different.  I only wish I had a big,beautiful boulder upon which to write so that generations of gardeners to come could read it and be inspired.

April

Welcome, April
 come right in.
I've been waiting  for you.

Here in the garden you will find
Purple crocus
golden buttercups
velvet pansies
red tulips
and me.

Robins and Cardinals
too busy to sing
follow my hoe
seeking worms

Now that you are here
there is much to be done

Beans will go here and tomatoes there
 I draw an imaginary plot in the air
Cabbages and onions all in a row.
And of course  flowers,
flowers everywhere !

Dear April
I'm so glad you came.
But surely you've noticed
what a stir you've made.

You arrive so splendidly
in garments of green and gold
with Spring in your pocket
you touch the gardener's soul.

-Carolyn


Written by Carolyngail at Sweet Home and Garden Chicago All rights reserved