PAD 2 Poetic Bloomings favorite food

Ham and Cheese Crepe

I’ve only had it once, but that day

it was the best meal I’ve ever tasted.

Maybe it was the salty sea air

of Galway Bay, Ireland on Inisheer

the smallest of the three Aran islands.

Maybe it was because we had just walked

seven kilometres past hundreds of rock walls,

past the wreck of the Plassey, a rusted out ship,

and uphill to Dun Aengus, ruins of a Bronze Age fort.

I got the crepe at a little make-shift stand along the shore.

I watched as she poured the batter in a large pan,

loaded it up with ham, cheese, onions

and some kind of condiment, folded it nicely

and handed it over to her hungry customer.

I still remember how delicious it tasted

as we rested and waited for the boat

to take us back by the Cliffs of Moher.

PAD 1 Poetic Blooming the last movie you saw

The Rise of Skywalker

¹⁶ For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. ¹⁷ After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 NIV)

Will be business as usual

As it happened in Noah’s time

Most will not be expecting it

When Jesus returns in the sky

The blast of the trumpet will sound

The Lord will descend with a cry

The dead in Christ will come alive

When Jesus returns in the sky

And no one knows the day or hour

When we will meet with them up high

We’ll be on our way to heaven

When Jesus returns  in the sky

Poetic Blooming window

Window

W hen my husband had mental health

I ssues I could have left for a

N ew life but

D ivorce was not an

O ption. I opened the

W indow to hope and healing.

for Kathie

Hope

H e, the God who created the universe,

O rchestrates the details of my life

P erfectly, joyously and lovingly

E ach and every day throughout eternity.

Poetic Asides Big Blank

Big Universe

I took a college course

about the Hubble Telescope

with a very intelligent professor,

but the only thing I remember

is that the universe is big

and getting bigger.

And God made it all.

PB haiku

I spy through the hedge

My neighbor bringing ladder

Unexpected help

Poetic Asides recipe

Recipe

R ole call of ingredients

E ach measured

C up, teaspoon, tablespoon

I n time and with

P atience, we will be

E ating something yummy. I hope.

Poetic Blooming Father's Day

Dad

He liked to fish and hunt.

He’d work at the steel mill all day

and work in the garden or yard in the evenings.

He’d do funny things like hide in the woods

and make bob cat noises to try to scare us.

He’d tell jokes and make us laugh,

but he’d yell, too, when we were driving him crazy.

I can still remember the way he said, “Yeah?”

when we’d relate what happened that day,

or say, “Gee Gosh!” when he was frustrated.

He’d call us  Smokey, Sam, Clem or Sassafras

or Kathy, Judy, Linda, Connie, Karen all in one breath.

He was always wishing he had put in two bathrooms.

Apparently he didn’t think he’d be living with six women.

Poetic Asides Best

My Best Sister

Brave Kathy, led my Girl Scout troop

With my big sis we have a ball

A loving soul in any group

She is the best sister of all

Judy is very generous

We’d climb together and not fall

We always have things to discuss

She is the best sister of all

Linda and I would often walk

Between us two there is no wall

We like to play Scrabble and talk

She is the best sister of all

When young, we would call Karen “Pup”

Her kindheartedness is not small

Fun and funny, she cheers us up

She is the best sister of all

Poetic Blooming scene

Barn Dance

People milling about in a large barn

with a musty smell from the haybales

arranged in the front on which my friends

and I sit. We break out our instruments:

upright bass, acoustic guitar, banjo,

mandolin and there’s me on my ukulele.

The toe-tapping sounds blend together,

making it hard to pick out instruments.

People clap, smile and dance to the music.

My fingers dance about on the strings,

but only in my dreams. In reality,

I’m lucky to plunk out the hokey pokey.

Poetic Bloomings

A Voice is Heard

A voice is heard throughout the land

But some will listen, some will not

Encouragement and reprimand

A voice is heard throughout the land

Some folks will lend a helping hand

And others add a blemish spot

A voice is heard throughout the land

But some will listen, some will not

Poetic Asides Half Way

I’m More Than Half Way

I’m more than half way to the end
But I don’t know what’s ‘round the bend
Will it be all downhill from here?
Or mountains till the way is clear 

I’m glad, on You, I can depend

You are my Lord, but also friend
I know You’ll rise up and defend
You are the one I hold most dear
I’m more than half way

With obstacles I may contend

And sheer, tall cliffs I must ascend
But with my God, I need not fear

And you will wipe away each tear
To break the ribbon, I intend
I’m more than half way

Poetic Asides Moon

Sky Secrets

When the sky is smiling

with its moony smile

and starry winks,

it whispers its windy secrets.

Thought for the Day

A Crude Analogy

Sometimes writing a poem

is like having a bowel movement.

You have no say in the matter,

but must drop everything and act

when it’s ready to come out.

Poetic Bloomings Memorial Day

Conflict

The soldiers don their army greens

And with guns and gut fight for freedom

Then politicians don their business suits

And take away freedom with the pen

Poetic Asides Outdoors

The Outdoor World

(Quatern)

The outdoor world—it beckons me

With windy whispers to my ear.

The branches wave invitingly

With color change throughout the year.

The sunshine warms upon my face.

The outdoor world—it beckons me,

Adventure in another place,

To hiking trails and feeling free.

The robins call and they agree,

The air’s much better in the wild.

The outdoor world—it beckons me,

Reminding me of when a child.

But here I sit within my home,

Inside responsibility

And longing for the time to roam.

The outdoor world—it beckons me

PB dizain

Coincidence

(dizain)

While I was taking my leisurely walk,

a woman greeted me with a warm smile.

I didn’t know her, yet I stopped to talk,

if just for a rest since walking a mile.

I looked at her, puzzled, for a short while.

“Your name is Connie?” My nod did attest.

“And you live down there?” she pointed due west.

“No,” I said, which about ended the chat.

“Oh, I got you mixed up,” she quickly confessed.

I wondered, What were the chances of that?

PB Little things, big change

The Little Things

Sometimes it is the little things

That bring about a giant change.

The smile he gives, the song she sings

Can make someone’s life rearrange.

I know this may sound somewhat strange.

A compliment, a favor done.

To visit, text or call someone.

Yes, life can turn upon a dime.

Some people need a bit of fun.

And some just need a little time.

Poetic Blooming quatern

 From the Midnight Sky

 

The moon smiles from the midnight sky

The cool wind whispers through the leaves

Nocturnal critters creep about

While people dream their sleepy dreams

 

The stars twinkle  their cheerfulness

The moon smiles from the midnight sky

Owls huskily voice their wisdom

Skunks and raccoons scout for food

 

Mother possum carries her load

Rabbits snuggle in their burrows

The moon smiles from the midnight sky

Deer hunker down waiting for dusk.

 

Clouds hover over the forest.

Pines sway and sing their gentle songs.

People snore and turn in their beds.

The moon smiles from the midnight sky. 

PB French forms

Caregiver Plus

(bref double)

The room I sleep in holds two birds.

The living room has one small fish.

Two cats hang out on the front steps.

Three giant doggies wait out back.

Two puppies are within their fence.

And in the outfield are the herds.

There’s chickens, ducks and rabbits, too.

An old, small dog completes the pack.

A man lives here who has no words.

I care for him while folks are gone.

And for the critters, be a steward.

And try not wonder what comes next.

It seems my time is cut in thirds.

My day’s become much more complex.

Poetic Bloomings Mother's Day

The Moms I Know

Flowery poems about dear “Mother”

have their purpose, I suppose.

But the moms I know aren’t

each a goddess, angel or rose.

The moms I know have their faults.

They may act a bit stressed or crazy.

They mess things up, are a tad selfish,

And, at times, they’re even a little lazy.

They might not get it

when things happen right under their nose.

They fear they’ve done permanent damage.

As the years pass, uncertainty grows.

The moms I know are human,

but fiercely fight for their kids to survive.

They’d do anything for them.

Their joy is to see them thrive.

Poetic Asides unsettled

Unsettled

U sually changes are

N ice interruptions to break away from a

S tandarized day. But when something

E normous comes along,

T aking your whole routine and

T urning it upside down,

L eaving you in search of a new normal, it

E liminates fondness for change and stirs a

D esire to get back into some kind of rut.

Poetic Bloomings Meta-fours

A House of Delight

Joyful worship

Grateful forgiveness

Growing love

A church should be

a house of delight.

Boredom, ritual

Guilt, hypocrisy

Lord, help us make it right.

Poetic Blooming Internal rhyme

Arise God!

(seoks)

Arise God!

You’re the wise, almighty one.

The light guiding our way

The dayspring of hope

I sing to You

Arise God!

Poetic Bloomings Pandemic effects

Social Distancing

My life’s about the same in the pandemic
since Hubby and I don’t get out much.
Our kids live away and we have no grandkids.
I go to the store less, watch church online
and count toilet paper squares for each use.
But the man who lived with me for ten years
had his 46th birthday and I couldn’t be with him.
So I stood in his lawn and made hugging signs.
He just laughed at me from his closed
bedroom window and probably wondered
why I left his gift on his doorstep and why
his caregiver wiped it off with disinfectant.

Poetic Bloomings formal wear

My White Skirt

After a flood drenched my storage space

I sorted through it to see what I could salvage.

The white skirt I wore to two formals remained unscathed.

I had kept it all these years hoping to fit in it once again.

I held it up and marveled that I ever wore that tiny waste line.

I think if I ever wear it again it will be in a casket.

They can slit it and put the whole thing on my front side.

No one’s going to see the back anyway.

A Prayer

 

Rising Above

 

Did you ever feel like a complete flop?

The goofs and failures won’t stop

And even though blessings abound

There all these reason to feel down

I took a nap so I could think straight

But I woke up to a gloomy fate

Why is the world going south?

Why do I feel so down in the mouth?

I’ve got to get a grip and look to the light

Ask Him to give me hearing and sight

God, fill me up with the Holy Ghost

With all my needs I need You the most

So even though I never seem to win

I know that I really do with Him.

Lord, I know all things are possible with You

Yes, focusing on You pays

I know like a  fog this funk will lift

And then I’ll think nothing’s better than this

Then hope will rush in followed by laughter

You are the One my heart seeks after

So please turn off what’s turning me blue

You are the God of highest praise

I will worship You all my days

And seek to follow in Your ways

PAD Challenge 30-3 praise

In praise of poeming pals

who persist in praise

and inspiration

despite pandemonium.

PAD Challenge 30-2 praise

Pressing On

What I appreciate about you, hubby,

is that though two strokes robbed you

of so much, you’re not depressed

or rendered useless by self-pity.  

You don’t drag me down in gloom.

You appreciate me when I

do things you can’t do anymore.

You just plug along and

do whatever you can each day.

You laugh at my jokes.

You cry when you think about the Lord.

A lot of people would be very difficult

to live with after what happened to you.

Thank you for just pressing on.  

PAD Challenge 30-1 praise

Glory

“Accompanied by trumpets, cymbals and other instruments, the singers raised their voices in praise to the Lord and sang: ‘He is good; his love endures forever.’ Then the temple of the Lord was filled with the cloud, and the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled the temple of God.” (2 Chronicles 5:13-14 NIV)

At the dedication of the temple,

God, You, showed up.

I praise You for many things,

creation, love, forgiveness

holiness, eternal power.

But Your glory sets me in awe.

In the presence of Your glory

fire falls, priests can’t stand,

people hit the pavement to worship You.

Your glory is unique to You.

No one even comes close.

I praise You for Your glory.

Thank You for the times

that I’ve tasted even drops of it

during worship, out in nature

in prayer, or by that still, small voice.

My heart sings, “You are good

and Your love endures forever.”

PAD Challenge 29-3 total blank

Totaled Pinto

Shortly after they were married

my sister and her husband had a fight

and my sister came home.

Her husband was apologetic

and determine he was coming that night.

Dad told him to wait till morning

because it was snowing

and driving would be dangerous.

But my brother-in-law insisted.

The next morning,  he arrived by taxi

with his arm in a sling.

He had totaled his Ford Pinto.

“Don’t say anything,” he told my dad.

Dad didn’t, at least, not within his hearing.

PAD Challenge 29-2 total blank

Total Cereal

It was shortly after we got married,

and I was in the experimental stage of cooking.

I volunteered to bake chicken for a bereaved family,

but I didn’t have cornflakes for the coating.

So I used Total cereal.

Later, one of the family members

said they were trying to figure out

what I seasoned the chicken with.

It was vitamins.

Total cereal tastes like vitamins.

“100 percent of the Daily Value

of at least 11 vitamins and minerals.”

Not exactly how you’d want chicken to taste.

That’s the last time I did that.

PAD Challenge 29-1 Total blank

Totally Embarrassed

I got up too early this morning, about 5 AM.

I checked my cell phone at 5:30.

The carpenter had emailed the evening before,

“What time’s good to turn off the water.”

“Anytime,” I texted and hit send.

Uh-oh.

He probably has his phone by his bed.

When he came this morning

I asked him if I woke him up.

He said that he wondered what I was thinking

to text him at 5:30 AM.

“I wasn’t thinking,” I said,

and apologized profusely.

It’s not good to send a text anytime.