confession:
sweets are my struggle
today I
ate three rolls
of Smarties ~ the Giant kind
(that’s no small matter)……
Confession Shadorma
Demi-Sonnet for a Summer Night
fairy lights twinkle in summertime trees
night magic sparkles on firefly green leaves
darkness of black sky sets stage for the stars
evening’s cool blanket, reprieve from the heat
front porch swing beckoning rest for sore feet
chamomile tea welcomes day’s end with peace
myth’s constellations: such stories they weave
June Gift Basket
If I were giving
you a gift basket
I’d make it a summertime sensation!
you’d receive
a skin-safe clean sunscreen
to keep you scorch-free and silky
a pair of sunglasses with readers
to soften the sunbeams
and a splishy
lightweight water tumbler
to saturate your senses
a basket sure
to make a splash !
Say Yes to Oui
I find inspiration in the lids of the yogurt I eat. I buy this brand not just because it’s delicious, but for the messages and the pure glass containers that will root new plant life for me to share with friends. Here is a poem inspired by Say Oui to Time Off!
Say Yes
we said yes because
what we know about us
is that we like a big window
and gray and white
and newness and matching
towels and linens
not odd assortments
and light,
plenty of light
and good music speakers
front, back, and outside
for good 70s tunes
and fifteen trips to France but
not going there
instead, staying close to home
but still away, oui?
and time off
to enjoy it
School’s Out Rictameter
One of the things I love to do when I have a little spare time is read the blogs of other writers. I noticed that Donna Smith of Mainely Write was part of the same KidLit Progressive Poem that I was writing for 2025, so I checked out her blog and discovered a new poetry form – – a Rictameter. You can check out Donna’s blog here to read about the structure.
For today, I’m writing a Rictameter to celebrate the beginning of summer.
School’s Out!
school’s out!
what will we do?
camp in state park campgrounds
take family trips to the beach
have watermelon seed-spitting contests
read books in a hammock all day
count stars on a clear night
take a night swim
school’s out!
What Your Feet Know
In the spirit of tiny writing and short forms, today’s poem is a Shadorma (3-5-3-3-7-5) inspired by Georgia Heard’s Tiny Writing prompt calendar: What Your Feet Know.
What Your Feet Know
your feet know
after a long trip
the way home
your feet know
the tight pull of belonging
listen to your feet
Making Body Butter
My sister in law and I have been making various salves, lotions, balms, and body butters. It all started in April. She found a recipe for Bergamot Body Butter, and it’s been fun ever since. We each ordered some of the ingredients and a slew of containers, fired up the stove, and got to stirring and mixing, making our own magnesium and shea butter foot creams.
Today’s poem is a simple tricube – three stanzas of three lines with three syllables!
Sister Time Tricube
bergamot
shea butter
olive oil
lavender
mixing bowls
minerals
beeswax flakes
kitchen fun
sister time
#VerseLove Day 19 with Jordan Stamper of Virginia- Bon Appetit! Food Poems
Jordan, our host for this 19th day of #VerseLove 2025, lives in Suffolk, VA.
She inspires us today to write poems about food.
lots of things I don’t do right in this world
but making a fresh sprout and kale wrap
with beets and a half dollop of
mayonnaise is not one of
them, fortunately ~ and
the difference is
right outside on
the porch where
it grows
fresh
March 30: 8:28-8:59 Seed Sprouts
Sprout Smile Nonet
it’s been a long time since I’ve made them
I was a child in the kitchen
making sprouts with my mother
I got a kit today
two drain lids plus seeds
with my own jar
and I felt
my mom
smile
Way back in the 1970s, my mother taught me how to make alfalfa sprouts. It was fun for a kid to do. You get the starter seeds and rinse them, then soak them overnight. Each day for a week, you rinse and drain. After a week, you have enough sprouts to last you a week on sandwiches and salads, and it’s more economical than buying them in the store. Much more fun than when we hung a flat white bean on a wet paper towel in a Ziploc bag on the classroom window and watched it sprout and then took it home and threw it away. These sprouts we actually ate.
In my slice time this evening, after a day of visiting another camper dealership and then stopping for dinner and a shared banana split to celebrate our anniversary on the way home, I opened the sprout kit that I’d ordered and began the process of making the sprouts.
They’ll be amazing on a tomato sandwich with salt, pepper, and mayonnaise – – I’m already eyeing one of my green tomatoes on the back porch, wondering if just perhaps it will be the one to ripen in time to meet the growing sprouts in a springtime taste explosion of a sandwich on sourdough bread.
My mother would be so proud! I can feel her smiling down, knowing I’m thinking of those days in our avocado-colored kitchen of the 1970s at the corner sink, shaking out the sprout seeds together, all amazed and dazzled at their growth.
March 26: 6:20-6:51 Handwarmer Mug
6:20-6:51 p.m.: My peace rituals are more necessary these days than they’ve ever been before.
Is it because I’m older?
Or because life is busier?
Or because the world feels so different today than it did yesterday?
Some evenings, I take a long walk with the dogs. Other evenings, I light candles. Some nights, I soak in a hot bath. Most every afternoon or evening, I make a pot of hot green tea and my husband and I indulge with local honey and a flavored herb blend. There is nothing that compares to the feeling of togetherness and unwinding over steam rising from a cup. When the world is cold, there is warmth in togetherness.
Steeping Peace
I come home from work
steep a mug of hot green tea
sweetened with honey
grab a tea towel
slip my hand inside the mug
buffered towel warmth
when the world is cold
a handwarmer mug steeps peace
from the inside out
