BEAUTIFUL THINGS WE SAW ON APRIL 4

Tom Rosenthal

Mountain trees slowly turning green again
Big fluffy dog looking like a cloud
FaceTime with my cat cos I′m studying abroadThe water glistening at Boston Seaport

Picked some fresh flowers from a field near my home
A stranger saved a child who walked out in the road
Teenagers on a scooter on their way to school
I think they were falling in love

Mum cutting veggies into stars for me
Two little birds singing in a cherry tree
Sisters hugging on top a climbing wall
The flowers at my grandmas funeral

These are things we saw
These are things we saw
On April 4

A beautiful rooster strolls down the road
A ladybug on the bench by my home
The beach at night hearing crashing waves
My mum being happy on her birthday

My girlfriend kissing me goodbye
Two squirrels on my window in the sunlight
Playing in the park at sunset with my toddler
Laughing so hard she's getting hiccups

A woman with a moon tattoo on her foot
A parrot flying in the streets of California
My dog running full blast through a field
When I call his name

These are things we saw
Beautiful things we saw
On April 4

Shoes on a boy two sizes too big
Me and my colleague sharing sweet mandarins
His face and his smile bringing coffee in the morning
A mouse nibbling some bread

An old couple kissing with energy
Two little rabbits in the cemetery
Zebras running through the Serengeti
My best friend in love

Highland cows huddle as the rain came down
My baby kissed the top of a radish sprout
My sweet Dachshund followed me around
While packing up to move to Canada

These are things we saw
Beautiful things we saw
On April 4

A lady picking up trash from the street
A mother and her son wearing matching beanies
A collage of sunflowers from my auntie
The roast potatoes getting crispy

Some nice discounted cheese that I bought
A big St Bernard jumping in a pond
Neighbours opposite me making love
A sweet good morning text from my crush

The baker smiling unexpectedly
My rescue dog walking next to me
A picture that I painted in Lviv
During an air-raid alarm

These are things we saw
Beautiful things we saw
On April 4

My bus to work arriving on time
My first birth as a student midwife
My husbands first smile after our fight
A hundred Swifts flying in the backlight

Raindrops like jewels on a spiders web
The doors of the hospital as I left
Two lovely old Italian men
Drinking some wine in Rome

My boyfriend′s chickens hiding from the rain
Grandpas chuckle on his birthday
Two little kids on the subway
Completely immersed in their books

These are things we saw
Beautiful things we saw
On April 4

Riding my bike through a storm of snow
A little robin looks into my window
Dancing crabs in Mexico
The first morning in our forever home

A chalk rainbow on the streets of London
A frog just chilling on the pavement
My girlfriend enjoying a bowl of ramen
The first autumn mist across the mountain

Sunset made my neighbours sheep look pink
An old man asked a statue for a kiss
A glimpse of my dad reading and smiling
I hope to see him smile more

These are things we saw
Beautiful things we saw
On April 4

My Calico cat watching bumblebees
A friend jumps around in new dungarees
A kiss blown down from a balcony
Caught below on the street

A man cycling with an office chair on his back
A girl with a bunch of tulips on a tram
Little girl in Kindergarten sat on my lap
And she called me 'beautiful'

A hidden garden near the conference centre
Two lady bus drivers laugh together
A man sat alone on a street corner
With a sign that said ′SMILE′

These are things we saw
Beautiful things we saw
On April 4

Woke up to a world painted snow white
My new therapist for the first time
A man singing loudly on his bike
A baby giggling to their parents delight

A squirrel running fast down an empty road
My student helped a friend zip up her coat
Seasons changing from green to gold
Auntie Mary-Jane died at 98 years old

Mum coming out of surgery smiling
Some new tiny sprouting seedlings
A photo of my grandma from the 60's
It′s her first birthday in heaven

These are things we saw
Beautiful things we saw
On April 4

The first sunny day of the year in Maine
Colleagues doing puzzles on a coffee break
A homegrown parsnip that we ate
Train to Glasgow on my birthday

A guy with a kitten in his hoodie on a bus
My curly hair after a haircut
Met a physicist outside a local pub
And his dog shook my hand

A grandmas smile in the supermarket
A Jack Russell like my childhood pet
My little boy drew a face on his bread
With a bit of blueberry jam

These are the things we saw
Beautiful things we saw
On April 4

The design for my beautiful mum's headstone
My dad reading a story that I wrote
Saw a nun win at Ludo
The charity shop had my grandmas clothes

Parents give each other a morning hug
People singing their hearts out
Kids playing in a bomb shelter
My best friend′s face

Old man with a beret, cigar, and glasses
Reading on a bench as the world passes
I've seen him on the same bench before
Seeing him made my heart feel warm

These are things we saw
Beautiful things we saw
On April 4

These are things we saw
Beautiful things we saw
On April 4