Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Slinky and Me

Out on the porch in the late summer sun,
My Slinky and me have plenty of fun.
His stretches tall; I stretch on my toes
What this linky Slinky does nobody knows 
It's upsy, downsy, woundsy, round
Fun—the best fun that I have found!

Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Wonderful Silly Me!

This is how I feel today; I just want to act all silly
Run around and ham it up—goofy and willy-nilly
I can google my face from side to side,
Sick out my tongue and cross my eyes. 
My sister poses as sweet as can be, but
The most hilarious one to see—is wonderful silly me!

Monday, July 29, 2013

Curiosity

My eyes dart here and there—I don't miss much
My little nose sniffs every smell—food, flowers and such.

My ears are listening to mix-and-match of mingled voices
Laughing, calling, speaking, singing—happy noises.

My fragile skin feels sunshine and the breeze across my face
My finger's touch the world—testing—learning every space.

I taste my world—taste good and bad—taste sour and sweet
My curiosity's alive. I find my world a wondrous treat!

Sunday, July 28, 2013

Unexpected

Crocus arrives smartly in January.
Daffodils dot the hills in February.
Hyacinths struggle through to March.
Tulips pop out of nowhere in April.
Lilacs and azaleas parade gloriously in May.
Roses take their time in June.
Hydrangeas make the scene in July.
Sunflowers decorate August.
Goldenrod joins the party in September.
Sugar maples show their colors in October.
Chrysanthemums reign in November.
Poinsettias brighten December.
Mushrooms sprout overnight. 
Startle us with their appearance
Unexpected—
Unannounced.

Saturday, July 27, 2013

Sostenuto

Sostenuto

Synchronous splashing surf
Surging, swelling,
Sweeping sparkling sands,
Setting slippery seaweeds
Stircrazy,
Stenciling smooth 
Silver-spangled shoreline, 
Streaked, striated, stippled.

Symphonic swells
Swirling, swooshing, shouting saltwater;
Strewing strandline with sticks, 
Silt. Stowing sand-dollars, 
Spiny starfish, smoothed stones,
Stranded shell shards; 
Stitching silent shorefront to 
Sapphire sea.

Friday, July 26, 2013

Cyclamen

With leaves like hearts, 
Why are you not hardy?
Your edges are serrated, but you just aren't cut
Out for life in a busy place.
Are you confused? You bloom upside down,
Inside out. You faint like a Victorian lady
Wanting attention—smelling salts.
A sip of cool water revives you,
Too much water and your leaves 
Turn jaundice yellow and fold up. 
You whine too much.
Maybe it's a fragile beauty thing; 
For few summer
Blooms or painted butterfly wings
Can rival you.

Thursday, July 25, 2013

Wildflower

On the livingroom table, glass
Canning jars spouted
Lavender and yellow wildflowers
From the south pasture.
She noticed the purple patch from
Her porch door where
They had called for her to come 
Outside and walk—watch
Hawks wheel in the summer sky.

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Welcoming Committee

The flowerbed by the front walk
Doesn't need to speak or talk
Waving flowers like flags or pennants
It greets us in the foremost minutes
"Say, I'm glad you're here today. 
Come on in. We hope you'll stay 
 For tea."

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Loaves




Staff of life
Yeast and wheat
Crusty and hot
From the oven door
All the world over
Bread—hot with butter,
Honey, fruit jams, cheeses,
Comes to tables
Nourishes life 

Monday, July 22, 2013

Message to Mama

Tell her that I love her;
Whisper that I miss her.
Tell I am praying. 
Tell her she's my friend.

Tell her that I love her; 
Tell her to get well soon.
Whisper that she's special;
Tell her that I care.

Tell her that I love her,
Little vase of roses;
Can you take the message?
Say I'll soon be there.

Sunday, July 21, 2013

Melon Time

A grand dessert come summertime
Fresh ripe melons from the vine.
Sweet and cold and oh so fine,
Cantaloupe and watermelon cut from the rind.

Saturday, July 20, 2013

Melody

Like a spontaneous song,
Bursts of blossom
Brighten the room
Like fireworks 
Like a praise of celebration
At a much-wanted baby's birth!
La-la-la-la-la-la...


Friday, July 19, 2013

Sunflower Song

Sing butter-bright circle of life,
    Sing in the summer's heated noon-light,
        Sing of the green grass, the oak tree's leaves,
             Sing of the blue sky—snow white clouds fly overhead,
           Sing 'till the moon comes up and we are all asleep in bed.
                

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Peach Juice

Take a deep breath
Smell them? Ripe
Peaches fresh from the branches

Succulent sweet drips 
Dribble down my chin,
Drips and dribbles like honey.

Laugh at me, will you?
I don't mind in the least
Peaches are too fine a treat to miss.

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

On the Cob

Ready to be peeled like green 
Bananas, kernels of yellow inside.
Pluck those ears from the stalks
Run to the house—shuck those ears on the way
Plunk them into a pot of boiling water
Take them steaming onto your plate
Oh, who needs a plate?
Slather with melty yellow butter
Sprinkle with salt 
Eat it hot.....too hot to hold
So good ....... so sweet corn.


Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Moon Shine

Half an 
Angel food cake
Riding a swirl
Of
Sea foam frosting
In the summer's 
Deep blue 
Ocean of a sky.

Monday, July 15, 2013

Yellow and Blue

Butter-yellow tinged with peach
Lift your faces up and reach
Towards the blue sky overhead
Dancing in the flowerbed.

Sunday, July 14, 2013

Bumblebee

Bumblebee, what a fine job you have!
Your career calls for visiting 
Gardens and meadows
Wherever flowers bloom, 
The enterprise you undertake
Sampling nectar of every flavor, 
You savor ( it's your duty)
Rose juice, crape myrtle wine, 
Peach blossom syrup, 
Daisy liqueur, Azalea sap, zinnia must,
Juice of lilies and daffodillies.
Do you have a degree? Would I need one?
Were I to learn your craft, 
Follow you in your profession,
Sniffing blooms and dipping my nose
In bright satiny colours 
All day long
It's a vocation, a delightful calling
I am certain I could 
Master and relish!



Saturday, July 13, 2013

Crownthorn


Chapel of glass on the hillside
Place of shady rest
Here the soul can quiet
Songbird silent on her nest.

Sanctuary in the woods
Place for prayer and praise;
Here my heart can listen
Learn Your holy ways.


Friday, July 12, 2013

Red Rose


Whose finger, like my mother's
Rolled this ribbon of red satin
Into swirls and curls?
Who smoothed it round and round
Tied it in the freshly washed 
Hair of a child 
Headed to Sunday School?

Thursday, July 11, 2013

Painting

We're painting circley summer sunshines,
Flower pots full of bright yellow dandelions,
Clouds sweetly sailing on blue-blue sky.
We can paint horses galloping by!
We're painting kites on wind, boats on lake waters
We're stirring and mixing paints of all colors,
We're painting bicycles, flags, and fireworks,
Purple houses with chimneys like smokestacks,
Crooked square windows and open front doors,
Gramps on his tractor doing farm chores,
Butterflies flitting and red birds a'singing
Sparrows on nests and goldfinches winging
We're painting summer, bright colored days
The garden growing a corn stalk maze.
Grassy green lawn and sweet pasture where cows graze.
We're putting up summer to recall on winter days.

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Blowing Bubbles

Blowing bubbles
Happy bubbles
Soapy bubbles
Breezy bubbles
Popping, spitting, bursting bubbles
Bubbles

Blowing bubbles
Shiny bubbles
Sunny bubbles
Sudsy bubbles
Bubbly, spinning, rainbowy bubbles
Bubbles.

Tuesday, July 9, 2013

Play Day

Little boys and turtles
A lively combination
Of shells and claws
Of hands and knees
Both roaming free exploring
Crew cuts and ball caps,
Boxes and burlap bags
Come now, turtle, let's go swim
Put him down, I'll follow him.

Monday, July 8, 2013

Swinging

What fun we have on a summer day
When friends and cousins come to stay
At Grandma's house where we play and run
And laugh and sing in the summer sun.

Sunday, July 7, 2013

Hot Sky

Billows like pillows 
For the princess of the pea
Storybook tale of old
Piled up miles high
In the hot summer sky.

Churning white billows
Silently crashing like the sea
Waves—washing, dashing 
On sandy shore
Building up more and more.



Saturday, July 6, 2013

Dreams

Soft as dreams,
As wedding veils
As soft as baby breath
As white as milk,
Sweet as gold honey
Dribbled on white silk.





Friday, July 5, 2013

Madison

I'm a fish! 
I'm a paddling dog!
I'm a duck,
I'm a shiny green frog,
I'm a turtle.
I'm a water bug,
A water lily
See me float
In my cute little boat? 
Look at me;
I'm swimmin'!

Thursday, July 4, 2013

Wednesday, July 3, 2013

New Day

New Day

A sweet damp coolness 
Strange for July 
Lies over the farm this morning.
I walk to the box to post
A letter to a friend;

Walk to where the horses
Graze in the south pasture.

Sam has pinpoints of orange neon
Along his ebony legs and flanks
He's been walking through 
Patches of Coreopsis 

Curious—He stretches his neck 
toward me, nostrils flared to smell
My fresh soap scent.

In the mown grass along the road
A length of tan white rope,
A snake's discarded mosaic skin,
Catches my eye.

Intricate, fragile, tenuous
Like designs etched in leather
My skin has grown thin too 
Mayhap, it is time to change.



Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Wind

Wind
Whips the prairie grasses
Pushes cottony clouds across the sky
Nudges cattle toward water holes
Dries seed pods, flowers, and grains
Sends milkweed parachutes flying
Bends trees 'till they lean in submission
Sweeps dust down country roads
Presses heat against my shoulders
Whistles though the tree tops
Wind 

Monday, July 1, 2013

Baby

Playtime in the summer heat
Run in the sprinkler. I'm sweet
Dig in the sand. Stay cool,
Wade in the bubble pool.
Run barefoot in the grasses;
Hope this summer never passes!