March SOLC–Day 25 and Poetry Friday Roundup
With warmer weather here, I’ve been out and about more. Last week I was delighted to see Pussy willows emerging–a sure sign of spring! My poem does double duty today for the Slice of Life Challenge and Poetry Friday.
Pussy Willow
Pussy willow whispers softly
of motherhood
of water and moon
of dreaming and intuition.
Legend says
a mother cat
wept at water’s edge
as her cloud-gray kittens
swirled within wild currents
and kind Willow
bowed down low
trailing graceful branches
to rescue
those struggling kittens.
And ever since,
soft gray paws adorn
Willow’s supple branches-
furry catkins
to remember clinging kittens.
In the chilly March breeze
Pussy willow bats her soft paws
at the dark edge of winter,
a silken harbinger of spring.
Molly Hogan (2016)
Thanks to Heidi Mordhorst for hosting this week’s Poetry Friday Roundup at My Juicy Little Universe. Head on over to enjoy some poetry!
Nix the comfort zone 
Pussy willows are one of my favorite signs of spring. Today you allowed me to learn about the soft paws at the dark edge of winter. I love the way your poem speaks of the legend.
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Molly, the legend of the pussy willow woven into a poem filled with detail and imagery. Thank you for a great opening to my day!
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I didn’t know that pussy-willow legend. You’ve told it so wonderfully in your poem, Molly. I hope I’ll see our pussy willows show up soon! I love “bats her soft paws”.
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Love learning about the pussy willow legend. Beautiful job with the poem!
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Poems about nature are my favorite and I grew up in Wisconsin where pussy willows were all over! This is so original and I really enjoyed it!
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You taught me about the pussy willow legend, Molly, by writing this beautiful poem.
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What a beautiful poem, Molly— I especially love that last stanza! I’ve never heard the story of pussy willows before, nor have I ever been fortunate enough to see them in the wild. Thank you for enlightening me today.
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I’ve never heard that story either, but your poem took me back to some of my very earliest memories–it must be one of the first plants my mom taught me about.
“as her cloud-gray kittens
swirled within wild currents
and kind Willow
bowed down low”
Lovely language!
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We had a pussy willow in our backyard when I was a young girl. I loved to stroke the soft paws every spring. Some people brought them in as decoration but I never cut ours. Such a sweet poem with the perfect amount of tenderness, magic and warmth.
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OK, I’m going to ask–did you make up the story about the origin of the Pussy Willow? It is a good one. What a delightful poem. Thank you for sharing. Have a great weekend.
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No, I didn’t make up the legend ( I wish I were that clever!). I found a number of different versions on line. In some of them a farmer had thrown the kittens into the river in a sack, in others there was more ambiguity. Thanks for reading and commenting.
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Molly, I didn’t know the legend of the pussy willow… thank you for sharing that in your poem! Happy Poetry Friday!
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I love that last stanza of your poem, Molly. Nice.
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