Sunday, April 30, 2017

PAD 9 So blank

So Close Yet So Far

Freshman year 1976-1977
Met my husband, got married
Had kids, began raising them
Wrote, moved back east
Helped aging parents
Wrote, moved back west  
Homeschooled kids, wrote
Sophomore year 1996-1997
Built house, wrote books,
Finished homeschooling kids
Junior year 2015-2016
Host home, wrote, travel
Senior year 2016-2017
College graduation this October.
So close, yet so far. 

Saturday, April 29, 2017

PAD 8 panic sijo

Don’t Panic, Be Creative

Asked to teach four-year-olds’-class evening church in big city.
Icy streets, old copier, needing handouts, okay wing it.
Performing healing of blind man with thirty-three short actors.

Friday, April 28, 2017

PAD 8 panic

Panic Attack

I can’t say I’ve ever had one,
but I came close.
on a packed plane.

No room to move.
The overhead seemed too low.
I struggled for breath.

I squirmed and wiggled
and played with my laptop
taking it in and out of the back pocket

until the man in front of me growled.
I leaned back, stilled myself
and breathed in my coffin

until they let me out.

Thursday, April 27, 2017

Wednesday, April 26, 2017

PAD 7 discover shadorma

Hiking to
A view seldom seen
Wild flowers
Waterfalls
Fallen log across a creek
Clear lake to dream by

Tuesday, April 25, 2017

PAD 7 Discovery acrostic

Discovery

D etecting a need is the first place to start.
I nnovation you feed, searching the heart.
S ighting the answer leads to what’s true.
C arefully unearthing the right thing to do.
O ptimistically inventing a way to succeed.
V ictoriously finding the life-giving seed.
E ncountering hope and joy that it brings.
R adically locating new spiritual wings.
Y es! A breakthrough, the day that you flew.

Monday, April 24, 2017

PAD 7 Discovery

When We Discovered You

When I was a teen and
my best friend’s enemy
turned nice, we wondered
what happened to her.
You happened to her.

When we followed up
on an invitation
she extended to us
to go to a Bible Study,
we discovered You, too.

Sunday, April 23, 2017

PAD 6 sound rispetto

Springtime Sound

The mower sounds its grumble growl
Now near, now far, it stutters, stops
Reminding me it’s springtime now
The added work, my spirit drops
Persistent rumble fills my brain
It’s time to mow the lawn again
The air is sweet, fresh smells are great
But it’s the yardwork that I hate

Saturday, April 22, 2017

PAD 6 sounds nonet

Fame and Fortune

Once I had to work at McDonald’s. 
I cashiered, swept the dining room,
Washed pots, poured pop, made french-fries.
I still know two ounces.
When fries hit the grease
Sounds like applause.
On-stage dreams.
Yay me!
Star.

Friday, April 21, 2017

PAD 6 sounds

Refrigerator Ghosts

My refrigerator is haunted.
Maybe by the ghosts
of all the animals
that pass through it:
chickens, cows, pigs and fish.

Thunks, hums, rumbles taps, moans.
Sometimes I fall asleep in the living room.
I wake up in the dark, startled. What’s that?
I must remind myself,
it’s just my haunted refrigerator.

Thursday, April 20, 2017

PAD 5 elements abracadabra

Grandfather

The silver shimmers in his hair
His smile a line-of-wisdom curve
Deserving all respect we give
And tender graces we can share
Gold treasure’s hidden deep within
Let’s mine it now while he’s aware
The stories of his bygone days
Can fill the minutes we can spare
He lived a life to love and serve
Deserving all respect we give
It’s time to show him that we care

Tuesday, April 18, 2017

PAD 5 elements

Treasures of Gold

When my great aunt and uncle
celebrated their 50th anniversary,
surrounded by gold, glittery things:
goldware, jewelry, candy dishes,  
Aunt Ruth picked up the napkin holder
my cousin made of popsicle sticks
and spray painted gold, announcing,
“This is my favorite!” 

Sunday, April 16, 2017

PAD 4 beginning/end Gogyohka

Beginning

Fresh start sparks excitement
Discoveries
Adventures
New friends
Becomes the new old

Saturday, April 15, 2017

PAD 4 Beginning/End 3 haikus

Too Novel

The summer begins
a lengthy, complex novel
Two young people meet

Relationship sparks
Marry, fighting, back and forth
Through all the stages

The winter begins
Learning to let love prevail
Holding wrinkled hands

Friday, April 14, 2017

PAD 3 Blank of love, triolet

A Song of Love

The blue birds chirp along the trail
The children chatter playfully
Miss Kathy stops to tell a tale
The blue birds chirp along the trail
Inside their houses all is well
She shares her land most graciously
The blue birds chirp along the trail
The children chatter playfully

Thursday, April 13, 2017

PAD 3 Blank of Love, tricube

Basket of Love

Chocolate
Rose bouquet
Poetry

Earthen mug
Flavored tea
Pink ribbon

Greeting card
Well wishes
Dear Grandma

Wednesday, April 12, 2017

PAD 3 Blank of love

Pictures of Love

Daddy holding me
on his lap,
listening to me
count to 100,
missing his TV show.

Mom washing Waggles,
my stuffed puppy that I vomited
on in the middle of the night,
drying it on the register
so I could go back to sleep.

Pappap whistling up the driveway
with his pockets full of candy.
And giving us hay rides,
pulling us along in a wagon
with his big red tractor.

My mother-in-law having
a closet-full of toys for my kids
and hot tea and stories of
growing up on Wyoming ranch
for me, after driving all day.

Tuesday, April 11, 2017

PAD 2 not today sijo

Turn Around

She thinks long on her actions the last few years and sighs deeply.
She regrets the way she’s thrown away the good with the awful.
She will pray, get things right with God, live healthily—but not today.

Monday, April 10, 2017

PAD 2 not today rispetto

Customer Service

The women at the counter talk
while I am waiting patiently.
I’m thinking that it’s time to walk.
I try to smile most graciously.

I lay the items right down there.
I clear my throat, giving the stare.
I’d like to buy a dress and more,
but turn and then I’m out the door. 

Sunday, April 9, 2017

PAD 2 Not today

Deadline

Dirty dishes stacked on the counter
resemble a small city.
Floors look like they’re ready for planting.
Bathrooms smell like outhouses.
Yes, I hear my house’s cry,
but my manuscript shouts louder.

Saturday, April 8, 2017

PAD 1 reminiscing

Pappap’s Yard

Pappap’s yard served as grandkids’ playground
Up-side-down table submarine
Tractor tire dizzy ride
Hide-n-seek and sardines
Boards turned into stilts
Large croquet field
Badminton
Pretend
Tag

Friday, April 7, 2017

PAD 1 reminiscing

Every year
Spring Easter-egg hunt
Pappap’s yard
Cousins, friends
Hunters become wise hiders
Then birth more hunters

Thursday, April 6, 2017

PAD 1 reminiscing poem

Science Class

When I was about ten or eleven,
I developed and aversion to frogs.
With bulgy eyes and hairless skin,
they were the most disgusting
creature on the planet, worse than
bugs, mice, spiders, rats or snakes.

When I learned that in seventh grade
I would be dissecting a frog,
the thought made my skin crawl
and would make me physically ill,
enough to keep me up at nights
figuring out how to get out of it.

The inevitable finally arrived.
I was twelve and facing the
pale stinky frog with probe
and scalpel. But I found that
it was fascinating and not as
nearly gross as I imagined.

My first lesson in thinking
about something can be
far worse than doing it,
beside housework. 

Wednesday, April 5, 2017

Abracadabra (using r’s)

Contemporary Christian Music

It calms our souls and brings us peace
As we focus on the living God, three in one.
Worshipping Him is what we’re designed to do.
As we worship, we feel release.
Breathing out the bad, breathing in the good,
Knowing we’re His masterpiece.
We bask in soothing or upbeat melodies,
Our joys rise as worries decrease.
It frees us up to have some fun.
Worshipping Him is what we’re designed to do.
We’ll continue, knowing this life will cease. 

Tuesday, April 4, 2017

Sunday, April 2, 2017

Gogyohka (five line poem)

Pick Me Up

Touching my lips
Warm and comforting
Filling my mouth
Liquid and satisfying
Hot tea with cream and sugar

Saturday, April 1, 2017

PA music genre Punk Rock

Punk Rock

I couldn’t say I’ve ever listened to punk rock.
So for this poem, I googled it.
As I listened to it I remember
driving by a band that was playing
in an empty lot in town.
And I thought, they’re young, maybe
they’ll learn to sing and play
if they keep practicing. I didn’t know
they were supposed to sound like that.
But some on YouTube didn’t sound too bad.
Others sounded like they were vomiting
out the lyrics or they were playing
boogie men and trying to frighten
small children. Some of their hairdos
reminded me of my sister’s old black wig
we used to wear on Halloween. Some
of them looked cool. None were smiling.
Some of the music sounded like what
we used to call hard rock. I couldn’t tell
what made punk rock punk rock.
So I looked it up on Wikipedia.