Beauty is Where You Find It

Margaret V.Doran

I looked for beauty by the roadside
two hours a day as I drove
but there is nothing lovely
in ribbons of concrete pavement
and lines of traffic as far as one can see

in the evenings there are at least lights
strings of red tail lights
decorations of oncoming head lights
but al those lights pollute the darkness
and obliterate the stars

I looked in vain
searching for something poetic
anything to stir my soul
but all I found was traffic jams
and road crews in orange vests

Before I made my way to the freeway
there were country roads
obliterated by rain and blowing wind
sheeting the water sideways and creating
high water and mud and floods large and small

until today

Today there was frost on the ground
I turned on the ignition and cranked up the heat
then spent long minutes scraping ice patterns
from the windows of the car
before starting the ugly drive

but today the fields were a wonderland
of frost
there was no mud, nothing ugly
only diamonds reflecting the cold light
of the sun

clear blue cloudless skies
and a moon-white sun awakening
the inanimate
trees I had never noticed
sparkled and glittered

frosted with the cold condensation
of winter dew
making the trip new
opening the door to beauty
that had somehow heretofore escaped me completely

Copyright © 2002 Margaret V. Doran. All rights reserved.

If you enjoyed this poem, please send her an e-mail here.

Updated April 4, 2002
Return to Title Page