By Katherine Ware

Scotland holds a binding charm.
Lush green glens, and mountains, stark
with craggy peaks, beckon to my soul
with some deep, primal force.
Homeland of my ancestors, their lives
scattered and shattered to end up in the U.S.
My bones will not rest until returned
to the land of my great-grandmother's father.

DREAMS OF SCOTLAND II

By Katherine Ware

What perversity of nature resides within me?
While others wax on about tropical breezes,
I prefer the North Sea gales.
Salt-tanged air, and screaming gulls,
hovering on wind so strong, the birds
seem to hold unyielding patterns
against an overcast sky.
The smell of fish mingles with the salt,
the olfactory-sense it does assault.
With deepest pleasure, my nose
drinks in the odors of the coast.
Cold and gray, wind and rain, it matters not;
for to sense it all warms my heart.
Waves, crashing upon the rocks,
pound with the rhythm of the blood
pulsing through my ancient veins.
Endurance is my deep hope.

A Wee Bit About Katherine Ware

Katherine Ware is an American of Scottish Ancestry. She is currently completing a Bachelor of Science in Geography with a Creative Writing minor. It is her desire to combine her love of geography with her writing to help educate children and young adults about the world around us, and about what is in their own backyards. In between school work, and household chores, she is compiling her poems to make a book. It is Katherine's dream to return to Scotland one day. You can contact Katherine by writing to this email address: katherine@saltirecross.com