The big explorer

finally returned home, his paws

decided to take a pause.

~

The mud-pack, I’m sure,

and pumicing from the road,

were adequate pedicure.

Soaking in silence

Drifting in my self warmed bed

Avoiding duty’s summons

~

Sometimes our bodies

summons us to abandon

duty and just get some rest.

A new year begins.

We can decide to do what

we can or simply go hide.

~

Running doesn’t help.

Hiding is impossible.

All that remains is to fight.

Sudden surprises,

rarely welcomed with relish,

open the door to progress.

~

But they sometimes slam

one door firmly shut before

they open others.

Some things, like healing,

can’t be rushed, but they can be

slowly helped along.

~

Careful attention

and diligent adherence

to self care is all it takes.

Radial colors

swirl round every spot of light

when the coughing spasms pass.

~

Those coughing spasms

are no fun, but they did bring

color into a gray day.

A relaxing week

with family at the beach, but

Knox and the cats were not pleased.

~

Communication

of canine and feline pique

is often found in one’s shoes.

Check-out approaches

with such an unseemly haste,

can they be shocked we dawdle?

~

Our super power

is dawdling, but some folks

think we just checked out.

Twas the day after

Christmas and all through the house

what was stirring? Just the mouse.

~

People all prostrate

linger indolent abed

thoughts inchoate swirl in their heads.

How far from the grid

do we have to get before

even Santa can’t find us?

~

Santa delivered

the gift you sought. Seagulls filled

our stockings instead.

Help! Even though I’ve

said hello, the ocean keeps

on waving at me.

~

Beckoning you come,

play among the foamy Sprites,

disregarding floating ice.

Just imagine Knox

bounding up and down the strand

chasing after those Seagulls!

~

All the while he

would probably be barking,

begging for some wings.

Beaches in winter

sing to a smaller group of

folks, but still they sing.

~

Seas are hard to beat

for providing an expanse

in which to contemplate and breathe.

Sudden snow showers

falling from a sunny sky

took the highway by surprise.

~

From sun-lit beaches

to sun-lit snow, Virginia

has something for everyone.

It seems the only

qualification needed in

Trump’s world is incompetence.

~

Not incompetence,

but, rather, sycophancy,

are the chops appointees need.

Why must we battle

violently about the means

if, on the ends, we agree?

~

Sometimes the means we

take to get somewhere matters

more than the fact we arrived.

It takes so little

(food, water, companionship)

and dogs and cats are content.

~

So too, some people

are contented with the like.

Other crave more… to their loss.

In our great hubris,

we believe we understand

the impact of our actions

~

Hubris always fails

to acknowledge there are parts

of the story we don’t know.

When the choice is sticks

or squirrels, it’s squirrels (paws

down) every time for Knox.

~

He should jump higher!

And thus, therefore, acquire

both stick and squirrel entire.

Signs, Omens, Portents;

products of anxiety,

or just grokking history?

~

The universe speaks

to us in multiple ways –

sometimes using sign language

Reasonableness

is truly out of fashion

in contemporary discourse.

~

Who applies reason

while heeding a delusion

propagating enmity?

The new policy:

Redistribute wealth some more;

Making the have nots, have naughts.

~

And greed again trumps

common sense, outreach, and care:

me first policy laid bare.

Knox was so thrilled

when the flowers arrived, but

dismayed when they weren’t for him.

~

Flowers bring pleasure

to people and dogs alike,

more so, when unexpected.

Endless nights praying

for a word, of any sort,

be it fair or foul, but soon!

~

Don’t know why patience

has to take so long to learn.

I mean come on, speed it up.

Just to let you know

I might get used to all this

care and attention.

~

Just to let you know

we’ll quickly break you of that

with our third-world nursing skills.

They’re now all adults,

our children and grandchildren.

How shall we, now, interact?

~

In the past what’s served

us best is few suggestions

and lots of humor and love.

Birthday 82

is being celebrated

in unconventional ways.

~

Unconventional

is the hallmark of our clan,

whether two or eighty-two!

Some great adventures

are better left untaken

preferring boredom instead

~

Sometimes it’s not left

for us to decide. All we

can do is go for the ride.

Discontent must breed

before citizens will cede

a need, at last, for progress.

~

Progress is best made

when want is not confused with

need and needs are met.

As December wind

blusters, the sun rises up

and attempts to soothe.

~

That wind reminds us

It’s time to lock our windows.

With each gust we feel the draft.