Tranquil Moments - For Nature Poets & Nature Lovers

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Tranquil Moments - For Nature Poets & Nature Lovers

Welcome!

This web site was created for nature poets and those who appreciate the natural world and all it has to offer.

Poets are welcome to send their nature-related poems for possible publication on this web site. The main thing that I am looking for is poems that are easily understood. I don't want poems that leave you thinking: "What in the world is this poem talking about?" For those of you who send poems, you should hear a response from me within one week letting you know whether or not your poetry is accepted.

I've added a student poetry page. Below is a link to that page.

Student Poetry Page

I asked an online poetry group that I'm a member of to participate in a poetry challenge. The challenge was to come up with a poem to go along with the trail photo below, and the winning poem would be published beneath it. Below is the poem I chose. To see more lovely poetry that was inspired by the photo, just click on the photo. There are also additional photos there. I invite anyone interested to write something poetic to accompany them.

The Sweetest Kiss

I see trees and leaves and things --
along this path we've trod.
Beside the brook, we undertook
a song we both could sing.

Accompanied by birds of song --
whistling in the wind,
we took our ease among the trees
and tarried all day long.

And so it was we found ourselves --
lost in this daydream.
The stream of thought which we had caught
is where we came to delve.

And found we this --
the sweetest kiss --
that nature has to offer.

Dan Tharp 5/7/04

Check out the new 'poetree' contest for a chance of publication in a tree poetry collection. The royalties from the publication will benefit a tree organization. Deadline for entries is December 30, 2009. For details, visit the link at top of page.

I co-wrote a chapbook with a poet named Betty Lou Hebert. The chapbook was published in April 2004. It is 40 pages and contains 140 nature poems. All royalties from the book go directly to Wildlife Resqu Haus. Wildlife Resqu Haus is a wildlife rehab center located in Yorktown, Indiana, and they have been rescuing sick, injured and orphaned owls, hawks, woodpeckers, squirrels, deer and other wildlife since 1964. They just built a new building for the injured/orphaned animals, so if you like nature poetry and you want to help the rehab center out, you can purchase a copy of the chapbook, and kill two birds with one stone. Well, helping the birds, actually :) The chapbook is $10.00 plus $2.00 shipping. If you would like to purchase a copy, please click on the chapbook photo above, and it will take you to the Shadow Poetry Bookstore. (There is a form at the bookstore that can be printed out for orders by mail.)

-Stacy Smith

If you would like to learn more about Wildlife Resqu Haus, below is a link to a page about the center, on the Robert Cooper Audubon Society's web site.

http://www.bsu.edu/web/audubon/building_for_birds.htm

If anyone wishes to leave a comment for a poet on the site, I would be happy to pass it along to the poet(s) if their e-mail address is not listed on their poetry page.

"Nature never did betray the heart that loved her."
~William Wordsworth

All photos on the web site were taken by Stacy Smith in her home state of Indiana.

If you would like to use them on your web site, please ask. Thanks.

srsmith25@yahoo.com

Below is a link to my second book, In the Eyes of the Wild: An Anthology of Wildlife Poetry & Short Stories. All of the royalties from that book go directly to Wildlife Forever.

http://www.virtualbookworm.com/intheeyesofthewild.html

(Each click generates donation from sponsors)