Category Archives: love

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Shadow Lake

The road winds into the distance
rocks, roots, puddles and mud
draw them higher.
Each step one closer to the lodge
built years ago by others
who passed beneath more youthful trees.
Trees that now bend and sway
creak and groan as they lean
to hear conversation below,
chatter to ease the monotony
of the upward stretch.

Clouds twist and tumble
tease with grey and blues swirls,
jackets on and off
in rhythm with their play.

Each stride squashes every day worry.
Layers of adult responsibility shed
as boots splash and smiles spread.
Friends greet each other,
prairie dogs happy to ascend to the alpine,
to explore new territory.
Covered in mud they giggle,
children who play in the rain
because they can.

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I Pretend

chickenwearingshoes

(internet photo)
My tongue lolls
like a dog on a hot day.
It hangs out
day ’til night
to catch shooting stars
from our first date.

No clouds are too dark or too grey
to dampen the spark you ignited.
I stand in the rain.
Your scent washes from my hair,
so recently twisted through your fingers.

My squeaky-balloon shoes
squish along the sidewalk
each step one further from you.
If I had a rooster right now
I would make it wear these noisy shoes,
take away the annoyance of your departure.
Already your absence is a giant egg beside me.
The truth as much a surprise to me
as seeing a rooster wear shoes.

A quart-berry basket full of water
is easier to manage than your absence.
I would powder my nose with an ax
rather than be away from you.
I would eat plastic grapes, breathe fire,
drive a truck with a screwdriver
if it meant I would be back with you.

My mind has shrunk to the size of a pea
my body no longer exists.

I want to wash your feet, honor you
for blessing me with the gift of your love.
As each step takes me further from you
I walk like I have a tail between my legs.
I pretend it isn’t mine.
I pretend you are still with me.

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Birdsong

starling

(starling: internet photo)

Little songbird pretends to be a cat.
Shadow of an eagle looms overhead,
peacock plumage in the trash.

Caw of a crow,
magpie screech,
you search for your sound.
Whistle of a robin,
chatter of a chick-a-dee,
what will be your melody?

Wind gusts an arrow at your throat.
A bruised song unburdens.
A ripple courses through the leaves.
Spiders glint on diamond webs.

Love rings your little beak.

Fletched feathers of your arrow
shatter the fake cat.
Your chirp roars.

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Wedding Feast Preparations

polish plate(internet photo)
Women gather in the kitchen
lots of chatter as they greet and hug.
Cousins giggle and dart underfoot
before they’re put in place with a firm tug.

Baba dusts off aprons, Aunty sharpens knives.
Mama orchestrates a sizzling bacon two-step, crisp and precise.
It’s like a kitchen polka where busy hands mince and chop,
links of kielbasa fall in unison, all the perfect size.

Pickled rich with dill and garlic
cellar jars of ogorki-kisome they bring;
use only those smaller than a finger
for a tiny, green appetizer zinger.

Sour cabbage mellows, rolls just right,
“pigs in a blanket” tradition wrapped up tight,
timed to explode flavour with the first bite.

Holubsti! Holubsti! children lick their lips,
women grease the pans. They sculpt savoury treats
to fill colourful plates for the feast.

Baba’s stories bake deep in the oven
Aunty prods, she pokes and tastes.
Mama’s laughter bubbles high,
she makes sure nothing goes to waste.

The table is set with fine china,
crystal rainbows arc cloth from a loom.
Steaming recipes from the old country
piggyback newlywed wishes into the room.

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Mother’s Day Gratitude

Light-in-Heart

(internet photo)

My heart swells with gratitude for:
French toast in the morning and burgers at night
sunshine on a golf course
long distance phone calls
text messages
blonde hair, blue eyes and a big smile
yellow orchids
cupcakes with sticky icing
Dutch accents
watching Game of Thrones
laughing about Game of Thrones
hugs
gently falling rain

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Shifting Gears

cyclists

(internet photo)

I spin down a pathway
pedals whirl to keep up
to spend time together
close the gap
that isolates our hearts

tires roll past multi-color expressions
laughter, chatter, music, silence
I dodge crashing apprehension
scrape muddled rumination
from the gear shift of our relationship

my knees bend
pump, push, genuflect
bow to the journey
the adventure
the unknown
bow to discovery
as I learn
what makes your gears turn smoothly
and what makes them grind

bow to anticipation
riding uncharted paths
where we create our own ruts
where blisters reveal our soft spots
where together we go the distance

fix each other’s flat tires
and deflated egos
quench each other’s thirst
push each other
back to the beginning
where the gap first cracked
and we couldn’t see
where the ride would lead us.

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Vibrations

In every heart there is a secret nerve that answers to the vibrations of beauty. (Christopher Morley)

Masaru Emoto studied water crystals to prove his idea that “everything is a combination of energetic vibration. When some vibration and the other resonate, it always creates a beautiful design.” Dr Emoto produced stunning photos of water crystals to prove his theory.

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Tai Chi Papa

Tai-Chi-Meditation-Form

(internet photo)
Tai Chi papa
unfolds on a riverbank.
Black pants, brown jacket
weathered limbs beneath,
naked grace flows smooth.
River remains calm,
city rush
stalls.
Ancient art
soothes nerves
with raw deliberation.