Decima Cut Short
at 8 a.m. I checked my phone
they sent us in to substitute
in classrooms of our institute
on the front line of this war zone
in my mind there flashed 4 gravestones
4 bus drivers dead of Covid
people’s fathers, their beloveds
Overshadowed
Overshadowed
when your thyroid sleeps
all of your underwear feel
like they’re on backwards
when you’re growing old
all of your body parts feel
like they’re hitching south
when you’re wrinkling up
all of your mirrors whisper
there may be stray hairs
when you’re standing up
all of your knee and hip joints
clash in a gang fight
when you’re lying down
your brand new CPAP machine
waves a bleached white flag
when your gray hair rules
all of the rest of you knows
you’re overshadowed
No Overtime!
No Overtime
aluminum-free
deodorant does not work
any overtime
Fetch!
Fetch!
Playing with Ollie
He knows how to count to three
Fetch the ball, Ollie!
Guilty as Charged
Guilty as Charged
September 5 –
I did it.
I’m guilty.
I early decorated.
The Dog Days’
heat of summer
have me craving
fall’s arrival.
Those crisp mornings,
those soul-soup yearnings
and cozy flannel feelings.
So I brought down the
pumpkins and wreaths,
fluffed the table linens,
unfolded the quilts,
and assembled the centerpiece.
I diffused the clove-blend oils
and ordered Welcome Fall gifts
for family on Amazon ~
aprons, teas, books,
and college football team jerseys
for all the Schnoodles.
I made hot spiced tea
and fixed hot chocolate.
I cleaned the pumpkin bread
pedestal plate.
And then I lit a candle
and pretended it was fall,
basked in the hygge.
But I won’t decorate for
Christmas in October, and
when I do the math –
calculating the first day of fall
on September 22,
I’m 17 days early…..
which is over a month late
by modern decorating standards.
I stand guilty as charged,
refusing to budge.
Schnooquains
Scnooquains
Schnoodle
ornery, sensitive
zooming, tug-of-warring, bullying
howls when phone rings
Boo
Schnoodle
transcendental, possessive
pawing, lap-snuggling, begging,
fierce hunter of lizards
Fitz
Schnoodle
playful, intelligent
fetching, greeting, sniffing
no paper shredder needed
Ollie
Abundance
Abundance
that feeling: when you’re
content in your surroundings
nothing is desired
Labor Day weekend
no place to go, relaxing
slippered feet propped up
Mississippi roast
in the slow cooker, dinner
ready at seven
three dogs chewing treats
from rescue to royalty
spoiled in every way
husband on the Deere
out mowing the funny farm
smell of fresh-cut grass
comfortable chair
reading a series of books
fragrant candle glows
afternoon sunlight
hazy beams stream through windows
can time just stand still?
The Fig Tree
The Fig Tree
I bought a little
three dollar clearance
turkey fig twig
from the scratch and dent
plant cart at Home Depot
a decade ago
today, there is no sign
that it was ever
the runt of any litter –
it stands tall and yields
an abundance of tender fruit
it simply needed time and space
and nurturing
the fig tree at Denise R’s house
down Pinckney Colony Road
not far from Salk’s monkey farm
smelled of fermentation
stood tall and took crews
with ladders to pick its fruit
I was a fig picker once at that tree
My young daughters picked
from my mother’s tree and
took to the kitchen
making strawberry pigs
and licking spoons
after dipping the
homemade preserves
into freshly-boiled mason jars
as they canned time and memories
in jars and sealed them tightly
with a pop-button lid
this once dispirited
Charlie Brown fig tree
that stands more like
Wonder Woman today
conjures welcome memories
but more than that –
it beckons more
canning of precious
family memories
while there is time
Monkey Farm:
Morning Greetings
Morning Greetings
whole grain oatmeal
cooked to perfection
topped with berries
maple syrup-drizzled
half and half doused
hot spiced tea steaming
a welcome way
to greet the day
Questions
Questions
I’m tired of asking
three-part questions and getting
one-part responses
Common Threads 