In this last month of HomeWords, we’re printing longer cinquain sequences that approach the theme of home. These connected cinquains were submitted by gifted poets statewide. The cinquain is a tiny—some would say confining!—form, just 22 syllables arranged among 5 lines: 2/4/6/8/2.  
But within its trim contours, it shines.       

Patricia Traxler of Salina is a two-time Bunting Poetry Fellow at Radcliffe and the award-winning author of four poetry collections and a novel. Her poems have appeared widely in The Nation, The Boston Review, Agni, Ploughshares, Ms. Magazine, The LA Times, and Best American Poetry.
AT HOME BETWEEN LAND AND SKY
1.
Winter
night, alight with
micro-crystals of snow
glimmering beneath a pale moon.
Silence.

2.
In earth
Still hard and cold
from winter, miracle
in barely thawed soil: bright saffron
crocus.

3.
Summer
sun dominates
the sky, the land, our skin;
even in night’s welcome darkness
it reigns.

4.
Autumn
air carries stray
memories, lost in time’s
whirl and spin before we knew them:
fond gift.

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The Kansas Humanities Council is a nonprofit organization that supports community-based cultural programs and encourages Kansans to engage in the civic and cultural life of their communities.