Tag: time

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The Value of TIME

Even though the days leading up to Dad’s death had some tears along the way, the laughter and the honest moments discussing the fine arts of bodily business got us through what could have been much sadder times. My brother and I found such humor in Dad’s way of putting things. He was a man of words, often high-brow words that no one else in the room knew, but every now and then he’d throw out a zinger of a word that left no question about its meaning yet still raised an eyebrow because it was so unexpected. The Reverend Dr. Wilson Felix Haynes, Jr., our dad, was a man who could talk backwoods Georgia slang and discuss the finer points of art by Michelangelo with layered meanings in scripture in the same 5 minute conversation, in which we also discussed the value of TIME.

Today, I share an acrostic poem inspired by the recorded conversation above.

On the Sculpting of David

T here’s an angel

I n this rock,

M ichelangelo

E xplained

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Raccontino Poems

My friend Margaret Simon of Louisiana is always inspiring me to try new forms. We write with several overlapping writing groups. Margaret hosts Poetry Friday and This Photo Wants to Be a Poem, organizes Spiritual Thursdays, blogs with Slice of Life, hosts and writes for EthicalELA during #VerseLove and the monthly Open Writes, and is a member of the Stafford Challenge. She has also published several books, and we presented a poetry writing workshop together in April at the Fay B. Kaigler Children’s Book Festival at the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg. She recently posted that the Poetry Sisters had written Raccontino poems, which are couplets of any number where the even-numbered lines end on the same rhyme and the title is expressed in the last words of the odd-numbered lines. I raise a glass to my writing friend Margaret today. You can follow her on her blog Reflections on the Teche. 

Family Vacations

packing suitcases ~ memories to make
experiencing life before we leave

there is no better way to spend our time
than taking a trip ~ a welcome reprieve

from routine demands, a fortress built for
placing importance in what we believe

things we can only learn as we travel
(like setting aside our personal peeves)

savoring now, embracing family
holding presence as belonging we weave

interlocking fingers: togetherness
fastening futures ~ no regrets to grieve

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My Retirement List 1-10 of 50

I’m taking the week to write list poems of all the things I’ll do when I retire. They say we should never retire from something, but instead always to something. So I’ll retire to some work and some play, but I want to steer my own wheel and throw away the clock once I retire. Starting today, for five days, I’ll list ten things a day that I’ll do when I am officially off contract.

  1. I’ll write into the day.
  2. I’ll visit the library twice a week to check out new books.
  3. I’ll read into the evening by the fire, dogs in my lap.
  4. I’ll shop at the farmer’s market for fresh fruits and vegetables.
  5. I’ll cook things fresh-grown and scrubbed clean.
  6. I’ll take morning walks with the dogs, strolling instead of hurrying.
  7. I’ll make pictures and put them on calendars and notecards.
  8. I’ll pick wildflowers.
  9. I’ll put the picked flowers in the flower press.
  10. I’ll make bookmarks with my pressed flowers.

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A Hike Through F. D. Roosevelt State Park

Boo Radley, Ollie, and Fitz hiking the red and white trails of FDR State Park in Georgia. I do not own the rights to this music.

Our time on this Thanksgiving getaway is coming to a close for now, but instead of starting the campsite breakdown as we normally do on the last afternoon of our camping adventures, we took an impromptu hike with the boys on the trails of F. D. Roosevelt State Park in Pine Mountain, Georgia. I’m sharing a video of their tail-wagging joy as Boo Radley, Ollie, and Fitz traversed the terrain.

We met another couple hiking, and the wife observed, “Looks like you have your own sled dog team!” I chuckled because I am always referring to them as our sled dogs. When my sister in law walked them with me this week, she was surprised by how hard they pull. I told her that if there were snow on the ground, we could put on skis and they’d pull us all around the campground. Truth.

Our Georgia State Parks offer different types of clubs for kayakers, canyon climbers, dog walkers, and cyclists. Tails on Trails seems like it would be a healthy challenge for the two humans belonging to these three canine trail enthusiasts for 2024, so already I’m thinking of working it into a yearly goal.

As we sat around the campfire last night, I turned on the green sparkle lights and watched them dancing like tiny fairies in the trees as I reflected on what I loved most about the week- being able to get away and enjoy time in nature with family, spending time with each other and with our dogs, and truly taking time to give thanks for our blessings. Time. Togetherness. Thanksgiving.

These are the parts of the week that meant the most to me.

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Welcome to the World, Noli Mae!


Today, our host at http://www.ethicalela.com for Day 1 of the August Open Write inspires us to write poems about hands. Denise Krebs of California is hosting today’s writing. You can read her full prompt here. 

Welcoming Magnolia Mae

yesterday, these hands
gripped handlebars, holding on
for the ride with friends

yesterday, these hands
swaddled babies, bandaged knees
as children grew up

yesterday, these hands
stitched a quilt for a grandchild
I will meet today

for today, these hands
will build Legos and fairy
gardens first, and then…..

today, these hands will
swaddle a new granddaughter
in rosettes and sage

so that tomorrow,
these hands will be remembered
this heart full of love