Saxonville and Framingham, Massachusetts (in the Spring Light: Mill Town series)

Along the Sudbury River, a largely extant mill complex, now housing an arts center, ballet studio, computer repair shop, and various other offerings.

Spring Light-2

Spring Light, the light of spring,
the fountain that emits light,
a fresh light, a penetrating light, the light
that welcomes yet another spring.
How precisely does this Spring Light smell?

It smells of seeds,
it smells of buds,
it smells of compost and manure,
it smells fecund and sexual, ruddy.

It is the odor of morning light, a bright green light,
at times red, that
coaxes seeds to germinate
buds to open,
bees to pollinate
and boughs to bear fruit.

And by fall, during the time of Fall Light,
the odor of Spring Light is a hazy memory.
Except for the lilac bushes outside my home.

—Skip Schiel