In the summer, my wife Kristi and I enjoy walking in a park near where we live whose ponds are home to beautiful swans. During one of our walks, we observed a young girl feeding two of these graceful birds who, in turn, were making soothing sounds of contentment. In Evening Song, I have brought together both this experience and the peaceful feeling of a late-spring evening of 50 years ago. It’s a romantic journey to the past — hearts are displayed in the shutters of each window in the house, and if you look carefully at the pond in the foreground, you will notice that it, too, forms a heart. - KP