It takes a supreme

effort to drop the snarky

and go for the nice.

~

Sometimes a supreme

effort is insufficient

to redress some foolishness.

Shall we cultivate

gratitude or sour grapes

in this contentious era?

~

Gratitude is soul

satisfying unlike the

 whine of sour grapes.

How do you plan not

to be naughty and just be 

nice this holiday season ?

~

THAT is NOT my plan

neither has it ever been

nor, I think, shall ever be!

Paper hanger’s choice.

Democrat…Republican;

over the top…down the wall.

~

When power papers

over, covers up or hides,

it’s not time to hang up. Vote!

Learning never stops

unless, of course, you’re Trump. In

that case it never began.

~

Seems he’s not alone

in lacking life long learning;

endemic to rich white men?

Self proclaimed greatness,

despite converse evidence,

isn’t just sad, it’s scary.

~

Tooting and tweeting,

he grows dizzy from touting

his own delusions.

I know you’re thankful

for your mother’s wise counsel,

but might there be something else?

~

In the grand vastness

of this stunning universe

is there else worthy of thanks?

In America,

our foreign born citizens

are clearly true patriots.

~

They know tyranny

when they see it and the pain

it inevitably brings.

Dare we remember

when conservatives wanted

to conserve more than power?

~

“If the big lie fails,

we’ll call it conspiracy!

That’s sound policy, right guys?”

When your yardstick’s long,

no matter what others say,

know you’ll never measure up.

~

Why use yardsticks when

objective compassion will

yield better results?

Lies are like kudzu,

sapping life followed by a

massive cover-up.

~

And, like kudzu vines,

lies grow in all directions

until whole worlds are consumed.

When tragedy strikes

some pursue a lighter mood

through gallows humor.

~

Humor can help us

survive and even thrive when

things seem unsurvivable.

Wisdom can be found

in all kinds of places. You

have to remember to look.

~

Wisdom, like beauty,

can be found most everywhere

if you look past the clutter.

As momentum fades

they need a little kickstart

to rekindle their fire.

~

 They don’t need a kick

 to keep going. What they need

are well-tended vehicles.

Now that you’ve been to

the Big Apple, did you take

a bite or were you bitten?

~

More of a light nosh

than a full five course dinner-

satisfying none the less.

Hours on the road

followed by abject panic

because the show must go on.

~

The show will go on

because of the devotion

of cast and parents like you.

The evening sky was

all aglow, celebrating

your entry into this world.

~

No Christ-child I,

evidenced by neither star

nor wisemen wending westward!

Coexistence ‘tween

Boomers and Millennials?

Never heard of Thunder Snows?”

~

We of the Silent

Generation endure their

thunder and their snows.

Winter is coming

soon. It already resides 

in the frozen hearts of some.

~

This long dark tea-time

has left us all seeking warmth

in the face of frozen souls.

He’s top of the heap!!!

… and yet, still unfulfilled.

Ain’t no mountain high enough…

~

Sometimes getting to

the top leaves unaddressed holes

waiting to be filled.

Finding no one home,

should we knock on other doors

in search of some common sense?

~

Common sense is scarce

whichever doors knocked upon.

Better to just grow your own.

A well performed farce

elicits more smiles than

farcical reality.

~

It’s one thing to watch

a farce on stage, another

to find yourself living one.

As autumn leaves drop,

is there anything you would

like to see fall before Spring?

~

Some monuments and

monumental egos sure

could stand to take a tumble.

Is this irony?

Only Donald Trump could make

Virginia turn solid blue?

~

We give thanks for this

unintended gift from an

ill-intentioned president .

Your photograph of

snow and yellow woods brought peace

to a restless day.

~

We all need deep peace

of quiet woodland pathways

in these loud, contentious times.

In this yellow wood

there is no road diverging,

only solitude and snow.

~

Neither do the eyes

diverge from such splendor as

yellow woods and snow.

Sun can melt frost with

presence and warmth, but it’s not

much help with fire.

~

Only cooler heads,

through prodigious effort, can

contain a wildfire

“Rest!” The doctor said.

So I sought solitude:

a salubrious Summit.

~

We know we’re really 

tired when rest becomes a

peak experience.

Suckerburg invites

paid lies. They’re profitable

so why change the face of things?

~

When booking ad space,

veracity and honor

garner fewer followers.

Expect an onslaught

filled with bluster and thunder

as we rise from this darkness

~

May we be heartened

by the courage of those who

speak truth to bluster.