pa prompt ill believe it when...

I’ll Believe It When the Yard

spreads out like an oasis in the desert
while we sit on the double swing breathing
in fresh evening air after a busy day,
conspiring for a life of joyful connectedness,
as petunias, snapdragons, marigolds bloom,

tall aspens provide refuge for our dreams
and doves, robins and sparrows chirp
to the rhythm of our hearts in sync.

Dancing in a House of Cards 

Lord, when I think

of all the things that can go wrong,

I feel like I’m living

in the proverbial house of cards.

One misplaced breath

will bring it all down.

I can’t imagine

going through life

without Your care,

Your vow to answer prayer,

Your admonition, “Fear not!,"

Your example of the birds of the air

and the lilies of the field.

So I thank You for Your protection,

provisions and promise

 of eternal life in Christ.

And I pray for those unaware

of Your existence

and how generous You are.

Please, open their eyes!

wordle Darkness, graphite, levitate, spoon, Paper, orange

Full Circle

Darkness engulfs me (almost) as I fiddle

with the graphite in my pencil.

I stare at it as if I’m expecting it to levitate.

And then I turn my attention to my spoon

in my tea, and I stir it around

with a ding, ding, ding as it bangs

against the mug, splashing the golden liquid

on my paper leaving an orange-ish stain.

I get a new sheet and begin my poem—

Darkness engulfs me…

Poetic Asides One last ...

Procrastination

One last email to read

One last poem to enjoy

One last turn to take

One last cup of tea to sip

One last piece of candy to snitch

One last walk around the block

One last chat to reply to
One last poem to write
before I finish my articles

which are due today.

acrostic

Disturbing

D irecting thoughts to the

I nteresection of trouble and worry

S ecurity of body and mind threatened with

T opsy-turvy feelings
U nsettling, upsetting
R oaming dark shadowy alleys of distress
B elieving what once was solid is now spongy
I mplying danger or horror’s ahead
N udging sanity to the edge

G rappling with niggling what-ifs

Morning Prayer 

Good morning, Lord, I invite you in.

First of all, forgive me for my sin.

I’m self consumed, I must confess.

Open my eyes to Your holiness.

Purify my heart and mind.

Today, help me be more kind

And in tune to the needs of others

Praying  for my sisters and brothers.

Open my ears to hear Your voice
And every moment make the choice
To love you first of all and then
Love others: women, children and men.
And when I go about my to-dos
May I be a person You can use.
Whether I’m making a bed or writing a story
May I bring You honor and glory.

Poetic Bloomings Photo Prompt

Shadow Dance 

What if?

the shadows

of our thoughts

were depicted on a screen

behind us as we walked along?

I have a feeling

we’d stay in our homes

and not come out.

But God sees the shadows.

He knows and still loves.

Lord, may my shadow dance

be pleasing to You.

And, sorry, when it isn’t.

wordle: amateur, diligent, and nurture

Only Old Once

Though seventy-seven, she

felt an amateur at life.

Always diligent to do good,
experiment and learn,
she nurtured her curiosity.

The more she did, learned

and experimented,
the more she knew
she didn’t know.

 So, now heading for octogenarian,

she satisfied herself with
reading Dr. Seuss.

McGelligot’s Pool,
The Cat in the Hat,
You’re Only Old Once
always brought a smile to her face.

Poetic Asides I'll Believe it When...

I’ll Believe It When I Get It in Writing

You say you love me, that

I’m the greatest joy in your life.

I’m God’s wonderful gift to you.

I’m the best thing that ever happened. 

But for one with bipolar disorder,

the greatest blessings

in a matter of moments

transform to annoying curses.

You say you love me.

Can I get that in writing,

so the next pendulum swing,

I can show you my credentials?

poetic bloomin in form parallelogram de crystalline

Mum

My mother

Large, lovely brown doe eyes

Ebony hair and cherry-red lips

Her kindness

A sprawling, shady tree

Providing a cool, peaceful shelter 

Inner strength

A mountain of boulders

On which her five daughters depended  

Her patience

A tranquil bubbling stream

Steady, continual refreshing

 Spring-like Worship 

God, I feel like I’m half asleep.

I want to be alert

to Your presence,

Your voice.  

I want to open a window

like on a spring day

and smell the fragrance
of Your being.

God I love You.

Wake me up.

Let me feel spiritually

vibrant and alive. 

Let me kick up my spiritual heels,

raising my hands

and shouting, “Halleluja!

“You are great and mighty!”

 For You are worthy of all praise.

I love You

and I worship You.

O Holy, Wonderful God!

Getting Over It

“You’re the only one with brown eyes,”

her mom said, as if it was something special.

She wondered why her eyes couldn’t be

green or blue like her siblings’.  

“She has a level head,”

adults said as if it was admirable.

She wondered why she was so boring

compared to the popular girls.

“She uses time to good advantage,”

wrote her teachers.

She thought, when teachers like you

you’re in trouble.

“I’m too tall,” said one.

“I’m too short,” said the other.

“I’m too average,” she said.

No one was satisfied.  

You can spend a whole life

learning to appreciate

the positives and overlook

the negatives of self and others.

Bullwinkle Day 

Put your thumbs in your ears

And wiggle your fingers

It’s a Bullwinkle day

Take a deep breath

As nervousness lingers

It’s a Bullwinkle day

Cinch up your belt

Hang on to your hat

You’ve got to be ready

for this or that

Pace back and forth

Because I’ve got to say

It’s a Bullwinkle day

Poetic Bloomings prompt: spring

As I Was Walking 

The sun made my skin smile,

the brilliant sky delighted my eyes

and the softly scented breeze

tickled my nose.  

I wanted to laugh out loud,

sing praise songs

at the top of my lungs

and dance in the street.

At that moment,

I was homesick for heaven

where I would be free

to do all of those things.

Yes, there is a heaven!

For if there was no home,

how would my soul

know to be homesick?

Good Morning, Lord 

Good morning, Lord,

I do adore You.

My time is in your hands.

Help me not be bored

and see me through

I hope You understand.

May I write

in ways that shine
to Your awesome glory.
As I fight
this fight of mine,
Lord, please write my story.

I commit my cares

my hope, my joys
all to You with trust.
My worries and scares,
my peace, my noise,
for You are good and just.

sonnet

Reunion 

Every summer, on the even years,

Five Shannon sisters and their families meet.

A mix of personalities, careers,

To reconnect this way is quite a feat.

With schedule for the week packed full of fun—

Some country side hikes and big city tours,

Bean auction, scavenger hunt, gifts homespun,

Nice restaurants and campfires with s’mores.

Swimming, exploring, shopping till dropping

And playing  Scrabble, Canasta and Pitch.

And laughing, hugging and story swapping,

So thankful when things go without a hitch.

For we’re well aware of what can take place,

Since this year, we will be missing a face.

The Fish 

What a beautiful day!

Actual sun in Ohio.

Warm breeze.

She looked out the window

and saw flashes of orange in the pond. 

Her husband, who could do anything

when he put his mind to it,

had built it for her.

When he put the fish in,

she questioned whether

they would survive the winter. 

He reassured her in his confident voice

and his half amused chuckle,

“Oh yeah, dear, they’ll make it.”

Now she walked out and watched them,

looking lively with their little fins twitching.

So they did survive the winter.

He didn’t.  

Now, she felt like the fish

must have felt

in the cold and dark,

waiting for the spring thaw,

wondering if she’d make it

to see the sun shine again.

She imagined

his confident, gentle voice

with his little chuckle,

“Yes, dear, you’ll make it.

You’re stronger than the fish.”

Poetic Asides Prompt: Challenge

Writers Challenge

Let them scratch their at heads at you,

wondering why you dangle a carrot

in front of your own nose, driven,

to write-- for what? they don’t know.

Why would you sit at a computer

when you could be planting a garden,

attending community meetings or

any number of important things?

Don’t pay them any mind, you know

the  magic of making tangible

 the intangible, hearing children giggle

or watching tears when answers appear.

So dangle the carrot, dream your dreams,

and do whatever it takes to motivate you

for you are a writer and if you didn’t write

 the world would miss something beautiful.

The Bop

Food for the Soul

She always saw herself as fat, even when

she was thin, but one day she realized she really was.

It was the day she saw the word on the chart, “obese.”

She was out of regular clothes into the big girls

and specialty shops. Her skinny jeans had given way

to five or six larger sizes, but still were skinny jeans.

She determined to feed her soul, regardless.

Twenty diet books rested on her bookshelves:

fruit in the morning, six small meals a day,

eat anything you want until appetite sated,

distract yourself with other things, think thin.

Her living room was filled with exercise equipment.
An expensive gym pass was tucked into her purse.
She watched the scale number go up and up.

The number she once hated became her new goal.

She determined to feed her soul, regardless.

She started accepting her body as it was,

appreciating its wonder despite its glitches.

She took her focus off the rolls, bumps and sags

and concentrated on loving life and being thankful.

She found her inner beauty and quit beating herself up.

Her clothes began to fit better, she stepped livelier.

She determined to feed her soul, regardless.

 

My Thinking Place

As a teen I sat on a fallen tree across a creek,

swinging my legs, watching water rush past,  

as minnows wriggled and crawdads scuttled as if sent.

I breathed in earthy air with wafts of lilac scent.

A leafy canopy covered me, and its boughs would creak,  

as I mulled over life’s puzzlements and the time passed.

I live in town now, and that special place is now in the past.

Its memories reminding me that, though heaven sent,

our experiences are like leaves floating along in the creek.

And like lilacs by a creek—past friends leave their lingering scent.

Poetic Bloomings Prompt Successful self to present self

Shooting Past the Stars 

You took the path unbeaten.

Not much fruit you’ve eaten.

But you weren’t a cretin,

you loved along the way. 

You worked in little bits.

You didn’t call it quits.

In spite of all your fits,

you took the time to pray. 

And now you’ve made a name.

You’re basking in your fame,

but your goal’s still the same;

it’s to hear Him say, 

“Good and faithful one

You obeyed my Son,
so I say well done.”
That’s your hope today.

Quatern

The Frog

I found the gift you gave to me,

a big-eyed frog that fiddled songs,

so silently testifying

we once were so much closer then. 

Was cleaning in the crawl space and

I found the gift you gave to me.

I took it from its little box

and listened to its soundless tune. 

Down in that hole, I thought I’d take

stuff to the second-hand shop, when

I found the gift you gave to me.

Wasn't sure why I clung to it. 

Though I don’t see you anymore,

I know you’re part of who I am.

Thinking about past memories,

I found the gift you gave to me.

Sedoka Form

Your Voice

It has been ten years

Since your deep voice met my ear

Like warm liquid oozing in 

Time has ticked on by

If you called, I’d have to ask
I wouldn’t know your sound, now

You were addictive

Like chocolate or caffeine
I had to go cold turkey

I had to repeat

He’s part of my life no more
He’s part of my life no more

Other voices came

And went like spring thunder storms
Washing your bass voice away

I breathe easier

I have become healthier
But an empty place remains

After  2 Corinthians 1:3-4

 Yay God, the Father of the Lord Jesus

Compassion’s Creator, Comforting God

Who cheers us up in our difficulties

So we can relate and reach out to all

Compassion’s Creator, Comforting God

Who loves the unlovely and heals our wounds

Brushes us off, picks us up when we fall

Who hugs us and wipes the tears from our eyes

Who sticks with us till contentment resumes

Who cheers us up in our difficulties

So in love, Your people can do likewise

Yay God, the Father of the Lord Jesus

PA prompt Ekphrastic Poetry and PB prompt Walt's Genisis Form

In Each Other’s Arms

You and me in each other’s arms 

Making promises we can’t keep

Learning what heals and harms

Mesmerized by a love so new

Captivated by each other’s charms

Lying in a tumbled heap 

You and me in each other’s arms

Trying not to make a peep

The buzzing hive no longer swarms

Sister’s in bed, brother, too

Nightly noise raises alarms

Listening for patter of little feet

You and me in each other’s arms

The roots of our love growing deep

Resting here soothes and warms

Through the years we stay true

Finding shelter through the storms

Contented with the life we reap

After In Bed the Kiss by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec

Rispetto

Freedom in Christ

You call us with Your gentle voice,

So one by one we come to You.

Your love demands a free will choice

Expecting us to follow through. 

How else can we truly rejoice?

If we were chained, we would be blue.

When we are free to walk away,

We cherish more the right to stay.

After Carl Sandburg’s Fog

Mental Fog

Fuzzy fog

on small feline claws

clamping into

my mind holding onto dreams

hissing at the start

of a new day.

Poetic Bloomings Prompt Fear

Looming  

I can never think of those three words.

Whenever I’m talking to friends

I have to halt the conversation

and say, “You know

the organization in each town

that helps visitors know the area

and its businesses thrive.

And then someone supplies

the correct phrase.

And then I always think of my dad

saying “car starters” for keys,

“bottle that talks” for phone,

“thing you push” for lawn mower. 

He had Alzheimer’s.

Chamber of Commerce

Chamber of Commerce

Chamber of Commerce

Shadorma

Prayers become

Aromatic trees

Children’s songs

Silver bells

Gentle gardens sprouting dreams

Dances of heaven

Rhyme Royal

Spring Snow 

Wind whistles briskly past my covered ears.

My fingers tingle at spring’s chilly breath.

My cheeks feel raw, I blink away the tears.

Though spring snow has its lovely lacy frills,

I long for sun and cheery daffodils.

And so I’ll shovel till my skin turns blue.

For what else can a Coloradan do?

Rime Couee

Trust

Preparing for what lies ahead—

What’s next after we rise from bed?

Nobody really knows.

Shall we anticipate or dread?

“You’re precious to God,” Jesus said.

Trust in the way He shows.