Poet’s Corner for March 2025

By George Hancock

March

Saturday begins the March run
Complete with Metrological sun
Metrological spring is the first
Now watch that green burst.

Steadily the color green grows
Warming our weary road toes
Mid-winter was a nasty one
With snow and ice by the ton.

March weather’s generally fickle
With winds that bruise and tickle
And yes, snow can create drifts
As Mother Nature loves to shift.

March is also my birthday time
My 72nd without a road crime
Aging more but still running on
Chasing that next super dawn.

March 9 is Daylight Saving Time
Now this is a real seasonal crime
There’s no need for this time shift
Technology moves us along swift.

This runner is out checking the green
And that fresh earthy spring scene
The roadside view is always great
March improves our road gait.

Ed. Note: Happy Birthday, George, from your RG family.

Road Shale

Snow melt reveals that shale
Which turns this runner pale
January was winter bad forever
Runners devised runs so clever.

Municipalities treated the roads
With salt and road shale in modes
That often ended in a scary result
And for runners a road insult.

Salt and road shale do work well
On our roads a very happy spell
But in March shale turns bad
With drivers and runners mad.

Speeding vehicles hurl the shale
At anything along their trail
Getting hit by shale does hurt
In the head a response is curt.

Trailing windshields often crack
Resulting in an expensive smack
Somehow, they get in my shoes
Creating some bloody blues.

Sadly, road shale stays a while
Until a distant day clean-up smile
Finds street sweepers on my route
Removing that pesky sharp lout.

Road Cracks

March also reveals road cracks
Resulting from freeze thaw attacks
Some cracks are a mere hairline
Yet make road runners whine.

Other cracks are long and deep
Allowing water in to creep
Road cracks are a nasty thing
Tripping runners in their sting.

Road cracks on my local roads
Never see any repair episodes
It seems only the PennDOT roads
Are sealed for safe traveling modes.

This year the cracks are really bad
January’s weather got very mad
These unsealed roads are many
Future repairs more than a penny.

Running without looking down
Can produce a bruising frown
The cracks are worse than potholes
As witnessed on my morning strolls.

Running cautious and road aware
Does lessen the road crack snare
Twisting an ankle is never fun
Especially out in the March sun.

March Green

Steadily March begins to green
Creating a fresh spring scene
Featuring this earthy rich green
Covering winter’s brownish mean.

Now as we run along the road
We view this emerging episode
Green vegetation is always nice
Better than that January ice.

We welcome the new green buds
That cover the late winter mud
Home lawns awaken and grow
As do my hedges in that row.

March 17 is St. Patrick’s Day
With green worn by the way
We began Daylight Saving Time
So, evening daylight does rhyme.

Even my pre-dawn run is green
As spring continues the routine
It’s still dark but green is there
Not seeing green is quite rare.

My March run is seasonal fun
Soon with that dawning sun
Green enriches our road life
As we embrace hilly strife.

Runner's Gazette