National Poetry Month - Day 1

I would never accept the "challenge" of writing a poem a day for a month. In my case, since I write very slowly and revise continually (example: it's April 1 and I've only written one poem to my satisfaction this year!), this effort would be onerous and doomed to fail.

However, I will try to post one poem a day on The Wonderful Boat, either one of my poems or a poem I particularly love.

To start off the month, here's my "Setback", first published in 14 by 14  in 2008, and part of my first collection, Lines of Flight (page 20):

SETBACK

I'd seen a goldfinch, days were getting mild,
the crocuses were up, and I could hear
the wild geese honking on the pond. Beguiled,
I'd set the garden chairs in place in sheer
delight. The northern winter-spring transition
is never easy, but I'd hoped this year --
Alicia's cancer gone into remission --
that April would be kind. Then we had snow
this afternoon, a boreal admonition:
Not so fast. Not so
fast. 
               Oh, to be the quiet sort
who bow their heads, accept the status quo,
conceding there's a God and we're his sport,
that winter is so long, and life so short!