Tether by Kirsten Dierking

Tether by Kirsten Dierking

I start every day with reading a poem in the morning and I end my day the same way, by reading a poem at night. It's a delightful way to begin and end your day and I encourage you to try it as well.

Kirsten Dierking's 3rd book of poetry, Tether, is a delightful and tender collection. Many of the poems have themes related to water and they are gathered into sections, titled, The Ebb Tide, The Visible Current, Body of Water and The Balm of the Sea. The cover of the book really reflects the contents of the book. The poems are calming, like a lazy day on the river.  They are full of nature and wildlife and once in awhile they bite like a big mosquito or hit you like thunder.

Dierking's poems are beautiful and exhibit a quiet strength, with a power hidden deep within.  The poems will make you think of thunder, soup and lilacs in a new way. I love how Dierking's poems look at everyday life and how she turns the mundane into something beautiful.
I felt grounded while reading Tether, connected to the earth and water and life.

I'm going to share one poem, Lilacs.  Lilacs are one of my favorite flowers and I relate to this poem on many levels.  The beauty of poetry is that we can relate to a line, a thought, a concept and be reminded that we are human and connected to each other or we can just find beauty in the words and how they are placed next to each other and how that affects meaning.

Lilacs

On the day of my birth,
I bury my face in purple flowers
and breath a scent so familiar,

I can't remember a childhood house
with lilac bushes, maybe it was
my mother who held the baby up

to the dense blossoms, maybe it was
my first pleasure, my mother whispering
breathe deep, it goes so fast.

by
Kirsten Dierking