Ladybug Lodge Poetry: 2013

Sunday, December 22, 2013

Christmas Is

Christmas Is

Christmas is in the lights
and the songs and the stories
and the gifts we give
& the cookies we make
and share...

Christmas is in every kitten
every card, every note
every newly born baby...

Every child loved
every memory cherished.

Every falling in love
... every newlywed
every anniversary...

It is in every Advent
all purple and pink
and then heavenly blue skies
white snow- green fragrant pines
red bows.

It is apron pockets
and ruffles and recipes
with cinnamon spice
and warm apple cider
and gatherings
in and out of the kitchen

Christmas is in every tree
and the journey from seedling to here
in all homes...

And outside

it is in distant bells ringing
a train whistle blowing
geese honking
and me

loving Christmas.

Thursday, December 19, 2013

Elevations

Elevations

Moon fall
drops
into my early morning window

A full moon
porthole of light

lifting me
from my chair

Saturday, November 16, 2013

Rustling

Rustling

Leave openings
for letters...
Slots in doors.
Boxes on streets.
Time in a day...

Leave openings
for letters,
letting minds
probe words...
as leaves play
lingering.

Pages and pages
of paper printed once
and reread ad infinitum
as echoes of memory
recall thoughts
& languages
to pontificate

as leaves play
lingering.

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

My November

My November

An autumn errand
on a blue sky day
is the sound of leaves
and the sight of trees
ablaze - Sun Gold
Bronze Bright Red
Apricot Orange
Russet Brown all bringing out
airy tunnels of tree reach...
curving into glorious glorious
glorious gold all around
A treasury of ethereal
with late afternoon light.

Friday, September 6, 2013

Transport

Transport

I did not see
until later
how he took stones
and tumbled them
with boulders of light
plunging though the trees
rumbling his truck
on the hillside
through patches of grass
and shale and clover

This & That

This & That (morning glories & mirabilis)

This & That

Self seeding
morning glories
& mirabilis
(four o'clocks)

Planted years ago
near the locked door
to compliment
the day- in turn
to have bloom
before and after noon

Year by year

From my wrought iron chair
I watch a moment here- a moment there
this and that...

Verdant green leaf inching
from miniscule to wide
tone by tone shifting
plant by plant
week by week to give
our slow summer shape
mounding air and light
into an assemblage

of eventual blossom

and humming bird pause
for favored flowers

Iridescence
adding blue to red
(yellow orange gold)
to purple to deep pink
as vines found stems
to twirl
to pull up
and over

tangling time
into now.

Sunday, September 1, 2013

Enjoying the Day

photo credit Jameelah Arcila

Enjoying the Day

Jameelah's daughter Anna
has a pink unicorn,
a soft pink unicorn
with purple feet
posed
here and there
in Bruges

Cobbled streets
and flower boxes
cupped by art

echoing
medieval times
and tapestries
and tourism
as in Canterbury Tales.

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Cost Shifting

Cost Shifting

Paying bills
Save a post office-
not a stamp

Paper's footprint
is a forest planted
leaves rustling... step
past the catch phrase
to save a tree

Save a landscape
and a paper bag
save recycling

Lower electric bills
and elevate human contact
connections- jobs...

Tally up multiple computers
Include data plans and clouds
add in hackers and spyware
and virus detectors
and spam

Save a post office-
not a stamp.

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Routes

The barns

built by hand

and maintained

for generations

are weathering

Land is subdivided

built up bit by bit

and the barns

board by board

break apart

brick by brick

crumble…

Scenic routes

a fragile link

to times past-

to old growth forests

and fields cleared

to one room schools

to a car on a country road

Familiar paths

might be Indian trails

or a deer run

paved and widened

as old barns weather

and a feral cat roams.