Sudden change is hard

to assimilate. We must

be gentle, give ourselves time.

~

Given enough time,

that sudden change we’re facing

will, most surely, change again.

Some purse their lips to

kiss and others purse their lips

to show extreme displeasure.

~

The same lungs we use

to whisper we holler with;

the intent governs the act.

How many sheepdogs

does it take to safely herd

one myopic ewe?

~

Apparently it’s

two, especially when that old

myopic ewe has no clue.

When judging ourselves,

do we value what we do

over who we are?

~

What we do and how

we do it, reveals who we

are to ourselves and others.

Even the pets felt

today’s heat and showed they much

preferred air conditioning.

~

Meanwhile, I spent

my day proving that adage

‘about mad dogs and Englishmen.

A cool gentle breeze

may be all I desire;

I get hurricane warnings.

~

When the new normal

is hurricanes, a gentle

breeze seems too much to hope for.

I hope the gently

falling rain will wash away

the cares of the day.

~

Falling water

may wash pollen from the air,

but can not resolve all cares.

Traveling up north,

I find Cicadas galore,

risen from millions of holes!

~

Though their journey took

much longer than yours, they stayed

the course, arrived with a song.

I pick up a pen,

make a mark on the paper,

create a wordless poem.

~

Why bother with pens,

or paper for that matter,

since we write with electrons?

Sometimes it may seem

the world is conspiring

to keep you under its thumb.

~

Laughter can loosen

the world’s hold and refresh our

worrisome, world weary hearts.

In that time after

the sharp bite of blaming words,

let’s practice self care.

~

So that we may be

better able to curtail

our acerbic impulses.

Tonight two poets

collaborated to craft

an insurance document…

~

When there’s more reason

than rhyme, poets go into

a sullen decline.

Let’s not focus so

much on the weeds that we fail

to see the flowers.

~

What some may call weeds

are, in truth, simply flowers

which refuse to stay in beds.

How do you confront

paranoid conspiracies

in the unreasonable?

~

If you want to give

the impossible a try,

begin with understanding.

Three car accidents

in our family in one week!

Makes one wonder what is up.

~

Call it bad Karma

or kismet, fate, or bad luck,

it’s certainly worth a miss!

So grateful to have

your calm presence after my

scary encounter with spin.

~

Cultivating grace

in the maelstrom of chaos

is a means of survival.

Slim moony sliver

racing the Sun and Venus

into the western gloaming.

~

There is much action

in the evening sky if we‘d

only take the time to look.

After a hard day

the setting sun can provide

a much needed soft closing.

~

Soft evening breezes

that accompany sunset

ease hard working muscle aches.

Time for Adulting.

Come, my son, to IKEA.

Let us purchase you a dresser.

~.

It’s so amazing

to discover these basic

ways of maintaining order.

It is more common

to search than to allow what

we’re looking for to find us.

~

Seems most commonly

that things looking to find us

are not things we’re searching for.

The slow drizzling rain

at day’s end can not dampen

the day’s earlier pleasure.

~

It can’t interfere

with my evening’s planned pleasure

since it will take place indoors.

Hurry up and wait

seems to summarize my life!

Glad I don’t bore easily.

~

Not by design, but

a balance is struck without

you even trying.

Rain drops glisten on

Juniper berries as sun

begins to smile.

~

And after sunset,

moistened Juniper berries

refresh deer, fox, and rabbit.

Mood is directly

proportional to wellness.

This vaccine degrades them both.

~

A short term loss, but

a long term gain – surely worth

temporary discomfort.

In our culture we

tend to emphasize speed, but

slowing down is what we need.

~

There’s no need for speed.

Unless you’re in a hurry

to become a feast for worms.

Sometimes when we try

to protect somebody else,

we do them a disservice.

~

Discernment is key,

and that often means giving

yourself some time to reflect.

Toward day’s end, the light

of the sun played on the pond

and trees, bringing much delight.

~

Those playful sunbeams,

illuminating the depths,

turn caracoles with sunfish.

Though interested in

the scampering squirrel, my dog

found poop more to his liking.

~

Trying though he might,

he’s finding it challenging

to roll around in the squirrel.