Craving PAD 17-2

 

Chocolate

 

Chocolate in my cupboard

Calling out my name.

Halloween was the excuse.

Now this craving I can’t tame.

 

I would hate to waste it,

And also waste a dollar.

So I’ll just sit back

And let that chocolate holler.

Craving PAD 17-1

 Pickle Dream

 

Last night, I had a pickle dream.

I had one in each fist.

I’d explain to all my friends

Nothing was wrong with this.

 

That I wasn’t expecting a baby.

I just wanted pickles.

I woke up laughing at myself.

At times a dream tickles.

Poem for blank PAD 16-3

 A Poem for Sale

 

Yes, I’ve sold a few

to magazines

and ezines.

I’ve written some custom ones.

Those were the most fun.

Google reveals poets

are making a go of custom poetry.

I wonder if it works.

With AI, perhaps

it’s becoming obsolete.

Poem for blank 16-2

 A Poem for an Awesome Cashier

 

Halfway between Denver and home,

my friend and I stopped for lunch.

I ordered a panini at the counter.

The girl said, “Awesome.”

I ordered chips and coke,

she declared them both, “awesome.”

I paid with a debit card which was “awesome.”

My friend had to use the bathroom.

For some reason that was awesome, too.

While waiting about twenty minutes

for my panini, listening to the girl

taking orders from other customers,

I wondered if she aimed for Guinness.

I thought if I had a nickel for every time

she said awesome, I’d get a free lunch.

I contemplated what she would say

If something really awesome happened.

If she won a million dollars.

Learned she was getting a new niece.

Or her favorite celebrity dropped in.

Would she say awesome?

Super awesome?

Would she realize how she overused "awesome"?

Poem for blank 16-1

 Poem for Christmas Cards

To my dear friends and family,

Concerning twenty twenty-four,

I hope your year was good and fun.

We’ve been blessed like before.

 

We began the year with our two kids,

To Mesa we did roam.

We had spent Christmas there,

And then we went on home.

 

With no events from day to day,

I cook and clean and write.

We watch dear Jacob once a week,

or more. At times, at night.

 

And once a week I help with kids,

In forest with my friend.

In summer, yardwork’s ever there.

There seems to be no end.

 

I spoke on Sacredness of Work

At local women’s group.

And met a friend who likes to hike.

We hike until we droop.

 

We had a special visit here

From Loren’s bro and wife.

We walked, played games and went to church,

A highlight of our life.

 

In May, our Prius up and died.

A Camry, we did buy.

July, we went to Mesa, so

From Phoenix I could fly.

 

To Denver, then to Germany,

We went on a mission,

A group of seventeen of us

To help build a kitchen.

 

In August, went to training camp,

Was for the nature school.

I met good people, had some fun,

That time was really cool.

 

When school began, took off a month

For Mesa and Lincoln.

With family in both places

That’s what we were think’n.

 

Sis and I went to Italy.

Did more than I can say.

We saw the sights from north to south,

From Venice to Pompeii.

 

Writer’s retreat in Tuscany,

Roman coliseum,

Assisi, Padua, Capri,

David in museum.

 

Then sisters met in Ohio.

There’s five of us in all.

We saw our great, great nephew babe

And nephews who are tall.

 

Then we went to Pennsylvania

To see where we grew up.

We chatted with an old neighbor

And cousins with their pup.

 

Then back to Mesa and then home

And made my to-do list,

But I wasn’t there very long

And then another trip.

 

Just an eight-hour drive from home,

A women’s church retreat.

We sang and praised weekend away,

And had good things to eat.

 

November tried to find my groove,

And stay right where I’m at.

So that’s my year poetic form.

I think I need a nap.

 

So Merry Christmas to you all

And have a happy year.

And may year twenty-twenty five

Soon bring you joy and cheer.

Nameless, Faceless PAD 15-3

 

Sneaky Somebody

 

Somebody pushed me.

Somebody pulled my hair.

Somebody tore my paper.

Somebody stole my pencil.

Somebody made that noise.

Somebody called me names.

Somebody did it.

Nameless, Faceless, PAD 15-2

 

Missing Motivation

 

Floating in the fog

Melting in the mist

Disappearing in the dark

Removed in the rain

Elusively evaporating

Nameless in my neurons

Faceless in my features

Nameless Faceless PAD 15-1

   Connection

 

“Nameless”

 By Lori Peters,

my daughter’s

first book of poems.

 

She claims

eliminating the name

prods the reader

to dig deeper

and find another way

to identify

with the character.

 

 Perhaps “Faceless”

will be the sequel.

Form PAD 14-3

 

Golden leaves quiver

Wind’s breath huffs and puffs and blows

The little leaves down

Form PAD 14-2

 Young Love

 

You weren’t so handsome, but handsome enough,

And tall and thin not rugged, strong or tough.

Oh, but you were so fun to be around.

Together, we adventured off the cuff.

 

Snowballs and field became a battle ground.

We swung on some strong grapevines that we found.

Or hiked along a creek one summer day.

And danced along to seventies rock sound.

 

We’d take long walks in rain when skies were gray,

Or climb a fire tower by the way.

And though, we worked and studied like we planned,

We often found excuses to just play.

 

One summer, I was off to distant land.

We didn’t know our ending was at hand.

What lay ahead, we didn’t understand.

What lay ahead, we didn’t understand.

Form PAD 14-1

 Reminiscent

 

It would have been dark except for the snow.

The street lights caught the flakes that flitted down.

And all around a warm nostalgic glow,

Reminding me of times in a past town,

When the whole world seemed like one big playground.

And holding hands we’d laugh and gently kiss,

Or ball up snow and toss it, hit and miss.

My thoughts that evening felt so bittersweet.

It stirred up longing as I reminisced

And trudged along one night on my home street.

Luck PAD 13-3

 To Be a Writer

 

So, you want to be a writer?

You’re waiting for the muse.

The inspiration.

The eureka.

The zone.

The flow.

Good luck with that.

Luck PAD 13-2

 

Luck

 

L uck lets me down.

U ndestanding and wisdom from the

C reator will guide me and

K eep my steps on a sure path.

Luck PAD 13-1

 With a Coin Toss

 

If you don’t know

what to choose,

this or that

one way or the other,

flip a coin.

Your feelings about

the heads or tails

will help you decide.

Feeling better/feeling worse, PAD 12-3

 Remedy

 

I always do a happy dance

When a trip is in the works.

Longing to go wandering

Is one of my quirks.

 

There is no need to rush,

I just got back from one.

But I’d feel more inspired,

Getting ready to have fun.

 

Maybe it’s like a carrot

Dangling before the donkey’s nose,

Something to motivate

As my “been there” list grows.

 

Lately, I’ve been feeling

A bit under the weather.

I’m sure some plane tickets

Would help me feel better.

 

 

 

 

Feeling better/feeling worse PAD 12-2

 

Signs

 

She had two thumbs up and a big smile.

I knew she was feeling better.

She wore a daisy for added style.

She had two thumbs up and a big smile.

I hadn’t seen her that happy in a while.

Even her hair looked redder.

She had two thumbs up and a big smile.

I knew she was feeling better.

feeling better/feeling worse PAD 12-1

 

Somewhere in the Middle

 

It would be good to feel better or worse,

But lately I just feel blah, not good, not bad.

Somehow, I’ve gotten knocked off course.

It would be good to feel better or worse.

I feel like I’ve fallen from my horse

But emotions are never ironclad.

It would be good to feel better or worse,

But lately I just feel blah, not good, not bad.

lost PAD 11-3

 Lost

 

L osing my way. I’ve done it so

O ften. Going this way and that.

S et off in the wrong direction.

T urned around, adrift, wandering.

Lost PAD 11-2

 Staying Found in Italy

 

On our tour of Italy,

we went to each activity

Had our tour for the day.

And then they would say,

 “Explore on your own.

Then find your way home.”

To me it was a recipe

to get lost in Italy.

For me this was wrong,

So I made friends and tagged along,

 

To avoid roaming in Rome, 

Vanished in Venice,

Gone astray in Siena,

Offtrack in Florence,

Misplaced in Cinque Terre,

Bewildered in Balogna,

Absent in Assisi,

Nowhere to be found in Naples,

Confused in Capri,

Perplexed in Pompeii,

or Puzzled in Pisa.

 

To remain oriented in Italy

I had to use my ingenuity.

Lost PAD 11-1

 Lost in a Palace in Venice

 

That day in Venice, my sister

stayed at the hotel. I tagged along

with a couple (Mark and Mindy)

so I wouldn’t get lost.

Mark looked a bit like Robin Williams.

My sister and I secretly

called him Mork.

 

I had looked forward to riding

a gondola in a canal,

but the boats were beached

due to rain, wind and cold.

We sloshed around the streets

of Venice in our rain coats,

umbrellas and plastic booties.

 

Some had bought the booties,

but by the time I had opportunity

my feet were already wet,

so I didn’t, but plunged in ankle deep.

Thirty euros to enter a palace

was expensive, but it was dry

and warm inside so we paid it.

 

Interesting paintings, armament

and even a chastity belt were on display.

After a bit, it came time to leave,

but we couldn’t find our way out.

The more we followed the arrows,

the more lost we became.

We wound up in the dungeon.

 

We backtracked and finally exited.

We were going to be late to meet our boat.

Mark ran ahead of Mindy and me

to let our group know we were coming.
I ran after him, umbrella in front of me

against the wind. Mindy trotted behind me.

Her mission was to keep me from getting lost.

 

At last, we ended up at the right place.

but when we got off the boat,

I lost Mark and Mindy, so I followed

another person who knew the way to the bus.

Mark and Mindy and some others

got lost and the guide went to look for them.

We laughed when we found each other again.

colors Poetic Bloomings

 

A Pretty Picture

 

A purple and white hot-air balloon

Floats in a brilliant blue sky

Over red and yellow tulip fields

Delighting the eye

Exhilarating to fly

And as Dorothy says,

“Why then, oh, why can’t I?”

Ten words PAD 10-3

 

Felt like soccer ball

With opposing teams

Poised to kick

Ten words PAD 10-2

 

Knees bent

Arms out

Surfer rides waves

Feelings taking flight

Ten words PAD 10-1

 

Bicyclist

Pumping uphill fast

Dog follows

Enjoyment

Harmonious comradeship

Enthusiasm

Weird PAD 9-3

 Peculiar

 

⁹ But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light; (1 Peter 2:9 KJV)

 

The people of God

May seem a bit odd,

But with God as the Dad,

We can’t be all bad.

 

Our commission from above

Is simply to love,

Shining the light

Amidst the night.

 

So even if it’s out of fashion,

We’ll praise Him with passion.

Weird PAD 9-2

 “Y’all are weird!”

Drawled our southern friends

Feelings were mutual

Weird PAD 9-1

 Weird

 

W hacky, wonderful, weird

E xtraordinary, many tiered

I nteresting, peculiar, strange

R eally bizarre and apt to change

D ay by day and that’s okay

Well Blank PAD 8-3

 “Well Written”

 

W onderful words

E ncouraging writers,

L etting them know that readers

Liked their words.

 

W riters feel

R ewarded for their

I deas, hard work and

T ime put in

T o creatively

E xpress what’s on their heart. “Well written,”

N urtures their creative souls.

Well blank PAD 8-2

 Well, Where Next?

 

One of my sisters and I,

We travel together

In many ways,

We’re birds of feather

 

We’ve been to Scotland

Ireland, England and Wales

We’ve been to France, Kenya

St. Augustine with tales

 

We just got back from Italy

And then I get her text

With a link to a tour company

Asking, “Well, where next?”

Well blank PAD 8-1

 

Wellbeing

 

I prayed for your wellbeing

As I did yesterday

All the Lord asks of me

Is to have a little faith

 

I prayed for your spirit

To trust God above

To look to your Father

For forgiveness and love

 

I prayed for your soul

To be well fulfilled

Embraced by happiness

With nothing concealed

 

I prayed for your body

To be healthy and whole

Free of aches and pains

As age takes its toll

 

I prayed for your mind

To be pure and clear

And to not be entangled

With confusion and despair

 

So look for these answers

Since I prayed for you

And I have this hope

That His promises are true

 

I prayed for your wellbeing

As I did yesterday

All the Lord asks of me

Is to have a little faith