June Daze
Crystal blue water
The air full of laughter
The water is warm
But the wind is getting cold
Hot pizza and wet hair
Catchy music
And fruity drinks,
Good friends and
A day that I wish
Would last forever
the moon led me home that night
on a silver winding country road
that curled its way through hills
and valleys, spinning,
weaving me into its light,
past fences and shining cold fields.
we spun together
through the starstrewn night
singing and shifting
past farm house and barn
to the end of the lane,
the moon shifting his face
to the glass of a swollen river.
KW 6/19/23 (originally written 2/18/88)
Days like these, I’m restless
overthinking every detail
sinking on the inside with weight of past decisions,
career paths, life trajectories
sending me spiraling
wondering how it all could be different
how I could be someone else entirely.
I cling to things I’m sure I got right
like my kids, my partner, a dog as neurotic as me,
being a steward of this land,
and all the amazing humans I am privileged to know
who do work to make life better for everyone
keep my head above water with hope
tomorrow won’t be one of these days,
but instead a day when I feel light
like I could float above the hills with happiness
for all the small good things in this world
So, I kick my feet, grin, and
push my way through these murky waters.
Little scholars, hills, and hollers
Ordinary days
Up and down the hills we ran
And in the creeks we played
Waited at the end of the lane
To take the school bus into town
Over bumps and curvy roads
Up the hills, and down
We drove to town to hit the books
But our learning wasn’t just at school
There was learning in the living
Gave us even greater tools
Spreading bare toes in summer grass
Sledding in winter snow
Working hard on the farm
And on Sundays, to church we’d go
We learned a lot about beauty
And a lot about hope and faith
Learned that if you put forth good effort
A lot of difference it will make
Learned to love our neighbors
Even if they lived a few miles down the road
Learned to depend on God
And how to shoulder heavy loads
In addition to the hard
We also knew how to have fun
Like indulging in an impromptu mudsling
At the setting of the sun
We burned the trash and drove the tractors
Spent hours in the woods
Rural childhood, wild, and wonderful
I’d go back, if I could
My pill minder boxes are empty.
Time to take out the trash, again.
Now you are taller than me.
I never go to the
children’s books section.
Not realizing,
cherishing,
the last
times-
Why the face, neither long nor short?
A petite frame making her way
through seasons, a boat through a lock,
the clanging of machinery, the water rising
and here is where the party was held,
nothing left but a Dumpster full
of paper plates and plastic cups,
pictures and memories, a milestone
celebrated or maybe mourned.
Electric fire
pulsates through
the heated air
then reaches me
from across the room
your eyes meeting mine
Your lightening green glare
sending shockwaves to my blue hues
Unearthing new and glorious colors
Within me like an ancient relic
From another worldly dimension
And it’s wave on wave on wave
Of us and us and us repeated
For all of time coming….
there is not enough time for what is left,
just the slow outro of unneeded closure
i stop myself from begging the questions
to which there are no answers & to which the answers are unwanted
the hours approach the moment when you will leave me
for the second final time
do i still have a list of things for which i need to ask forgiveness?
did my love already fill the hole which required my forgiving you?
i cannot write about the future without being cliche—-
Age 5
Weekdays @ 3:00
Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood
“You made this day a special day by just your being you.”
Age 10
Mondays @ 8:00
Star Trek: Voyager
“Survival is insufficient.”
Age 15
Wednesdays @ 9:00
The West Wing
“Yeah but I’ve been down here before, and I know the way out.”
Age 20
Mondays thru Thursdays @ 10:00 (Central)
The Daily Show
“And now, your moment of zen.”
Age 25
Sundays @ 9:00 (Eastern)
Game of Thrones
“Valar Morghulis.”
Age 30
Sundays @ 9:00 (Started teaching, would usually catch this Monday after school)
Game of Thrones
“Valar Dohaeris.”
Age 35
Mondays @ 9:00 (Stopped teaching, still sleep early; I’d watch On Demand Tuesday)
Better Call Saul
“Showtime!” *
*Aired on AMC
