PAD 18 life or death

A Lady I Know

She was a bossy, confident lady, a tad annoying,

the kind that tucked your tag in, if it was sticking out,

or picked lint off your sweater while you were trying to listen to a sermon.

She was gung-ho enthusiastic, sometimes trampling over quiet ones,

a bit of a bulldozer or a hurricane storming through.

Full of life and joy, she glided along like a surfer on a high wave.

But when her husband of fifty plus years died,

she transformed into a lost little girl

searching for someone to hold her hand

and help her find her way again.

PAD 18 life or death

Live!

Watch the variegated, changing sunset

Admire the wild flowers in charming array

View the world from the mountain top

Gaze into the eyes of loved ones

Gasp at majestic mountain wonders

Listen to the cacophony of bird calls

Hear the chatter of children as they play

Revel in the infinite notes of music

Taste sweet, salty, bitter, delicious foods

Savor a feast with friends and family

Try new mouth-watering recipes

Experience tasty food with thanksgiving

Let a baby’s fingers curl around yours

Snuggle in a soft blanket on a crisp night

Caress strong shoulders of a loved one

Bask in the morning sun on a busy day

Sniff memory-inducing perfume

Smell a turkey roasting in the oven

Whiff fresh-washed air after the rain

Breathe in lilacs in spring

Walk, hike, run, climb, scramble

Learn, grow, skip, dance, twirl, sing

Build, create, draw, paint, write, worship

Live!

PAD 18 life or death

The Voice

We’ve found ourselves in an awkward situation,

on earth under the skies looking for hope.

We whisper, cry, shout about the inevitable,

when our eyes close for the last time,

some fearful, some apathetic, some expectantly

waiting for the voice to call their names

in warm and welcoming tones.  

PAD 17 Dance

Dancing

Whirling to the rhythm

dancing to the beat,

this would be a lot more fun

if I had not two left feet.

PAD 17 Dance

Do Over

If I could do it all again,

I’d dance more

and not worry about

looking so proper.

Sometimes joy

flows from the feet.

PAD 17 Dance

Dancing with the Stars

On a Caribbean cruise,

my daughter and I

danced with the stars.

We looked like two

of the three stooges,

but we had fun.

We had our picture taken

with Florence Henderson

before her star went out.

PAD 16 Blank System

Religious System

Religion is a systematic way

to approach God

like a vending machine.

You put the change in and hope

for the blessings to pop out.

Christianity is an adoption

into a wonderful family

that brings change and blessing.

PAD 16 blank system

Security System

My daughter has a security system

that makes me feel insecure.

I never can remember the number

or what buttons to push

and I don’t know if I can leave the house

without setting off the alarm

fetching and annoying police

and costing an extra fifty. 

PAD 16 blank system

System

S o you have a routine, So

Y ou have a procedure

S o you have a logic you can’t shake. Your

T echnique of living gets old. You

E xpect more in a day, but practice makes perfect. There is a

M ethod to this madness. Having a system makes sense.

PAD 15 One Time

One Time

One time

you slipped

a ring

on my finger

and I said

I will.

Once is enough. 

PAD 15 One Time

One Time

Jesus sat

at the right hand

of the Father.

Now believers

sit with Him

in heavenly places.

And the Father

listens

with attentive ears.

PAD 15 one time

Ziplining

They said I was brave

for ziplining,

but if I’m truly brave

I’d do it again,

There’s only so many times

you can talk yourself

Into walking out into thin air.

That day, we did many times. 

I may have reached my quota.

PAD 14 Popular Saying

Drawing a Blank

Whenever I draw a blank,

which is getting more often,

I think of how my dad

went through all the stages

of Alzheimer’s till death.

And then I scramble,

making myself remember. 

PAD 14 Popular saying

Between a Rock and a Hard Place

I met a guy in a bar named Frank. Really.

We went four-wheeling in his jeep.

Somewhere in the middle of

God-knows-where Wyoming, we got stuck.

The jeep angled down against a boulder.

The back tires spun in loose dirt.

He worked hard and I manned the jeep,

almost squishing him against the rock.

Whenever I hear, “Between a rock

and a hard place,” I think of that night.

PAD 14 Popular saying

Hold Your Horses

She’s fifty-six, childlike,

and used to getting her way.

Non-verbal, with useless legs,

dependent on others all her life.

Gets her point across

with a variety of sounds and signals.

Knows what she wants,

wants it now, insistent.

I must have said, “Hold your horses,”

a million times in the past fourteen years.

And it always makes her laugh.

PAD 13 Family

Around the Table

The seven us, packed tightly around the kitchen table,

laden with garden veggies and meat from field or stream,

sat in our designated places at dinner and supper

and had lively conversations about how the day went.

I always leaned my chair back on two legs.

Mom told me to stop or I’d fall, but I never did.

My three older sisters moved out one summer.

It got quiet at our house with just my little sister and me.

That year, our church hired a summer youth pastor.

We took turns having him over for supper each week.

We chatted calmly around the table, with elbow room.

Then one week my three sisters came home for a visit.

We squeezed the pastor in and I’ll never forget his face.

His head bobbed trying to keep up with the conversation.

His eyes wide, he wore a half-dazed expression as if he

wondered what kind of hurricane was passing through.

There’s nothing like big family noise around the table.

PAD 13 family

Family Bond

Like ropes with many twisted strands

Like muscles move our bodies on

Like boards and nails build a great house

The bond of family makes us strong

Like drops of rain can make a flood

Like lots of links make gold chains long

Like flakes of snow can cover all

The bond of family makes us strong

Like glue holds things together tight

Like many notes make up a song

Like lots of hands make hard work light

The bond of family makes us strong

PAD 13 family

Our Cat

Our cat takes control

She treasures her bowl

She keeps

She teaches our role

With comfort her goal

She sleeps

Makes family whole

She gives us more soul

She leaps

PAD 12 Guilty

Fence Repair

When you say you will, but you don’t

When you know you should, but you won’t

When you hurt instead of heal

When you ignore how others feel

When you make it hard for them to stay afloat

When you pushed them to wits ends

When you’ve alienated friends

Don’t waste another day

Just be on your way.

Ask for forgiveness, make amends 

PAD 12 Guilty

Guilt

Termites of the brain
Gnawing, gnawing, gnawing

PAD 12 Guilty

Most Voters

Half the people

in this nation

think I did

something terrible,

but I’d do it again. 

PAD 12 Guilty acrostic

Guilt

G ut-wrenching 

U ltimate self-punishment

I nner turmoil

L oss of confidence

T ime alone doesn’t heal

PAD 12 Guilt acrostic

Guilty

G od forgive me for me for all the bad things I’ve done. Help me 

U nderstand what pleases you and what doesn’t.

I tend to do what I want to do and am very weak at self-control.

L ord, change my heart and help me be about Your business.

T oday, I want to do those things that make You happy. Help me remember

Y ou love me and You only want what is good for Your people.

PAD 11 sonnet

Breaking Chains

A fear resides within my thoughts today.
I walk along a garden path to think.
For I am growing restless as I pray.
The earth is sitting on a slippy brink.

My faith is not as strong as it should be.
When He returns, will my faith be in Him?
He gave it all, so I could have the key.
My lack of faith is keeping me so grim.

I’m like a baby, not a grown adult. 
I’m hungry for sweet milk instead of steak.
Unsuited to be brave, this is my fault.
I hold on to the thoughts that make me shake.

But His red blood flows deep within my veins.
He gives me what it takes to break fear’s chains.

PAD 11 sonnet

No Time Not to Pray

The power lies within, or so they say.
The job controls the many tasks I do.
But I take time to seek the Lord and pray,
Dismissing things that throw my faith askew.

Sometimes I take steps forward and then back
And learned that it saves time when I pray first.
As deep calls unto deep, I get on track.
A praying habit gets me through the worst.

It’s natural to feel there is no time.
I mean so well, but I forget my need.
Believing things will soon just turn out fine,
Forgetting I need His grace to succeed.

It’s not a risk that I should dare to take.
When I skip prayer, it leads to a mistake.

PAD 11 sonnet

Surfing Lesson

With fuss and flurry, they’re off to the beach.
The water waits so restlessly in waves.
In their black suits, he’s with her there to teach.
He points to rolling, rumbling surf she braves.

Her courage fades as she carries her board,
But there’s enough left to give it a try.
That fateful day, she had given her word.
No time to ponder flimsy reasons why.

She paddles out and jumps with the next wave.
But soon is tossed aloft into the drink.
He offers to quit, but she doesn’t cave.
She’ll catch the next one, with no time to think.

So back at it again, with many tries,
She plants her feet and feels as if she flies. 

PAD 10 travel dizain

One More to Go

So far I’ve traveled to forty-nine states

All but Hawaii left to discover

I’m glad to say we have reserved the dates

I’ll go with sisters, but not my lover

And my daughter, too, but not her brother

We will swim at the beach at Waikiki

There will be so much to do and to see

Touring and luaus will be so thrilling

I might even buy a ukulele

I sure do hope that the Lord is willing

PAD 10 travel bref double

Off My Rocker

It doesn’t take long when I’m at home

For me to get that itch to travel

Blue skies, new scenery, unmet friends call

Enticing me to drive, fly, bus, get going

I don’t know if I’ll ever lose that urge

Can’t imagine not wanting to roam

I love hiking, biking, swimming, adventures

Out on the lake, rafting or rowing

To explore the forest or feel ocean foam

Ziplining, dog sledding, jet skiing

They don’t think I’ll dare, but I show’em

Someday will I sputter and stall?

I’ll mount a motor cycle shiny with chrome

Next sit in my rocker wrapped in my shawl

PAD 10 travel acrostic

Travel

T ires

R olling

A way

V ery fast

E xcitement

L evels off

PAD 9 So blank, triolet

So You Want to be a Writer?

So you want to be a writer?

Writers write, you know.

Your schedule’s getting tighter.

So you want to be a writer?

Load’s not getting any lighter.

Write, even though.

So you want to be a writer?

Writers write, you know.

PAD 9 So blank, tricube

So I Wrote It

Thoughts won’t come.

Feeling tired

Clock ticks on.

No vision

No feelings

Where’s the muse?

A tricube

Three, three, three

Here it is.