A butterfly flew straight towards me, without any introduction, and landed on my bright Caribbean blue sundress. The one that I wear when I’m gardening with the palm trees on pink islands and yellow hibiscus flowers on it. “It was a swallowtail,” my friend later told me when I described its yellow and black striped […]
AKA: How Green is Your Grass? After my recent post, a day in my life in 25 easy steps (a description of my current typical day), I received a couple of comments that caused me to suspect that some readers might have the impression that my life is idyllic. I think things can sound […]
Some folks feel protesting is wrong, that you should mind your own business. But when the biggest earth mover in the world shows up at your gate, you suddenly realize that industry regulation is your business. ~ Author and poet George Ella Lyons, talking about strip mining in coal fields of Kentucky. If a family […]
Woke up, fell out of bed, Dragged a comb across my head, Found my way downstairs and drank a cup, And looking up I noticed I was late… ~ The Beatles The following is one typical day in my current life, told in 25 easy steps. 1. Sometimes, when I wake up, I find a […]
When my husband asked me recently what he could do to help in the garden, my answer was, “EAT! IT’S PAY DAY!” August Gold We get paid in corn for our garden labor We strike it rich with every husk pulled back The sun has forged an Aztec banquet a silky purse for August gold […]
My kind of car wash is the rain. It saves me from having to pay to get my car washed and from using the hose on my corn. Recently, I tried to unravel our green garden hose from the hook that it hangs on, but it was attached to my rake by a vine, and […]
I didn’t have to get the mail. All I get is catalogs and junk mail these days. I just wanted to stay outside in the night, under the stars a little longer, after my jump on the trampoline. But our driveway is long, nearly ¼ of a mile, and I had forgotten that the larger […]
My husband, Joe, and I live on the dividend of the honest communication that we’ve invested in each other over time. With just a little maintenance and upkeep, our relationship remains rewarding. He’s not even jealous that I sometimes yearn for a long distance love……the ocean. In fact, he drives me to it a couple […]
I had lunch with one of my dearest friends yesterday, a poet and an environmental activist. Although she’s more than 20 years older than me, she remains faithfully active, while I have become somewhat burned-out, fed-up, and a little apathetic when it comes to world affairs. Over our Indian rice and dahl, she recommended an […]
Here’s number III in the series. Part I and Part II can be found here. 51. I jump on a big trampoline for exercise. 52. As a girl, I was co-captain of the CYO (Catholic Youth Organization) drill team, The Bellettes. When I got older I joined The Bells. Over the course of my drill […]
Welcome in the word… Have you heard? Mara Robbins Small squares of laminated words from favorite poems hung from the poet tree like holiday ornaments. Under them, and situated between two nearby stages, the poets read whenever there was a break in the music performance line-up during the 3 day world music festival (Floyd Fest). […]
AKA: Colleen on the Soap Box ~ It’s always a challenge to choose which poems to read at a spoken word performance. The poems should be varied but flow well together. My friend Mara began her last reading at the Blacksburg London Underground Pub with an offering of “something borrowed, something blue, something old, and […]
