We met Maria on F2F trip and returned home to hear sermon on John 5…comparisons and contrast are striking!
retired (or just tired)
27 Mar 2023 7 Comments
in haibun Tags: blessings, experience, grandchildren, retirement, time, wisdom
Thank God for retirement! People may think the idea unbiblical but I disagree. God told Moses that priests should serve from age 25-50 and then retire.* They could help the younger priests after that. Of course, you don’t quit working; just quit working full-time and do what you can to help the next generation(s). You are free from the pressure to perform!
You must earn this stage of life and then you can reap the blessings of age. It’s hard for many to have enough to live on in later years because none of us know how long we’ll live so what is “enough”? It may be elusive but what a grand concept…to finally make time for the things you really want to do. Travel, exercise, volunteer, pray, read, spend time with spouse, visit friends, enjoy grandchildren, try hobbies, write poetry!
Growing older is not for the faint of heart, especially as the heart may faint. Body parts give out and may need repair or replacement but there’s no real cure for aging. You may even reach invisibility…people no longer pay attention to you which can be frustrating because you finally have the wisdom of experience! Yet now you are free to be you without worrying what other people think…except you want to be a better example to the youngsters.
to quote my dear aunt,
“aging is not for wimps”
travel down new roads
*Numbers 8:24-26
Linked with dVerse poets where Frank J. Tassone is hosting haibuns…
popurri sensorial
25 Mar 2023 Leave a comment
in free verse Tags: Boaco, carnival, carousel, cathedral, Nicaragua, park
in downtown boaco, nicaragua,
from pillared balcony we view
a celebration of woman’s day
while folkloric dancers twirl skirts
and babies cry in central plaza.
below cathedral’s clanging bell,
where thorny sangre de Cristo blooms,
a carnival worker pushes carousel and
smells of exhaust, tamales, popcorn mix;
un perro stretches lazily across bench
as thin horse clops by with firewood
and motorcycles roar past hotel
along steep somoza-stoned streets
under pastel sunset behind hills,
the city lights blink to night music.
whimsy swim meet
23 Mar 2023 18 Comments
along bank’s river
where snows fall twice
there flows fish ice
beneath the candling sky
of ceiling wax
a waxing seal
barks swimmingly in whalousy,
“’tis otterly ridiculous-ness, yes?”
_______
Join us for word play at dVerse poets!
he’s in God’s hands now
21 Mar 2023 17 Comments
daddy’s hands would hold mine when i was afraid,
fix my bike chain when it was loosened,
fold together in mealtime prayers, or
show me how to move chess pieces
yes, i have my father’s eyes
bluish-green or greenish blue
framed by long lashes and able
to see another’s point of view
as a teenager, i’d protest:
“papa, don’t preach!” but
that didn’t slow his sermons on
following everybody off a cliff
daddy could swear, i declare,
he swore in dutch at car engine
when i asked what those words meant
he commanded, “go to the house!”
no one could tease or make
me laugh as much as dad did;
every grin and guffaw conveyed
message, “your daddy loves you!”
A father poem, including song titles, linked to dVerse poets pub.
triolet nicaraguanse
21 Mar 2023 11 Comments
in triolet Tags: Nicaragua, paradise, travel, agua, iguana
life may seem perfect in paradise
but don’t drink the agua in managua
when you travel abroad, cheles, be wise
life may seem perfect in paradise
both piety and poverty wear a disguise
tourist trap market maze sells smells of iguana
life may seem perfect in paradise
but don’t drink the agua in managua
_______
“Agua” is water and “cheles” refers to light-skinned people. A triolet is a poem with 8 lines and ABaAabAB rhyme/repeat scheme.
extra-ordinary
18 Mar 2023 Leave a comment
sometimes i state the obvious because
it obviously moves me
beyond definition
18 Mar 2023 Leave a comment
in free verse Tags: acceptance, femininity, strength, woman
woman is well-rounded;
engineered with soft curves
to offer warm comfort, to
surround with accepting love
her wise eyes see hearts,
perceive another’s authenticity;
her sincere smile extends welcome
to beloved ones and strangers
she embodies social stability,
possesses strength of experience;
can keep home fires burning
and sustain the life of family
like her monthly cycle,
she gives generously
yet renews her energy;
circular pattern moves forward
why are we so afraid of
intrinsic-born femininity?
embrace the beautiful differences
of reality’s complimentary design!
a woman is not a man
and need not pretend to be
we are womb of humanity
and live beyond definition
master of ceremonies
26 Feb 2023 Leave a comment
in scripture Tags: feast, master, wedding, wine
at small town wedding party,
invited guests drank and danced
in week-long jewish celebration
“they’ve run out of wine,” she
stated simply yet in urgent tone
to rabbi son seated with disciples
(why should I reveal my powers
to rescue neighbor’s reputation
when it is not my time to die?)
“do whatever he tells you,” she
nodded to shamefaced servants
holding empty thirty-gallon jugs
he ordered them to fill jars
with water, draw out sample
and take it to master of feast
who sputtered after tasting,
“why would the family wait to
serve finest wine until now?”
not watery kool-aid or cheap
wine cooler but velvety merlot
or perhaps deepest sauvignon
gift from him, the vine and groom,
whose wine of blood saves from
shame all who will drink in faith
(see John 2:1-11)
woke psychiatry
21 Feb 2023 2 Comments
in rhyming verse Tags: gender disphoria, homeless, psychiatry, unicoarn, wo-man
what is a wo-man?
definitions can bend,
we deny motherhood
and give it to men
diagnostic manual
has changed over years,
believe you’re a unicorn?
here’s a horn and fake ears
gender disphoria is
a new-fashioned curse;
we won’t make it/they better
but can help them feel worse
crack addicts, delusioned
psychotics…don’t treat —
they seem perfectly happy
living homeless on street
wide-spread mental illness
society sick with dis-ease
throw out DSM / Bible
and think as you please!
__________
Will the thought police come after me?
smudge of grace
20 Feb 2023 2 Comments
in senryu Tags: ashes, mortality
ashes to ashes
made from dust, to dust return
yet, we shall be changed!
_____________
Christian observation of Ash Wednesday reminds us of our mortality.
point of reference
19 Feb 2023 Leave a comment
in tanka Tags: lonely, moon, smoke, tree
Happy to join Kristjaan at Carpe Diem Haiku Kai in an ekphrastic prompt!
in surreal dream scene
mysterious smoke signals
above lonely tree
is this a call to battle
or full moon celebration?
a poem in my pocket 
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