that's mrs. mediocrity to you

.

hinterland

i miss you
the way a flower
grieves lost petals

still
i set seed

feeding hungry birds
and ravaged wildlife

refusing
sun’s command
to wither

.

. . . . .

.

here i am again, doing this again–30 days of poems, hoping the words will come.
hoping hope will come, as well.

.

all the

lawns mown

stay home

closets sorted

stay home

hearts broken

stay home

wallets emptied

stay home

cupboards bared

stay home

minds bent

stay home

platitudes buried

stay home

.

. . . . .

.

here i am again, doing this again–30 days of poems, hoping the words will come.
hoping hope will come, as well.

.

overgrowth
(for alice)

nature has a way
of reclaiming
territory

just one lesson
taught
by my garden

grey turns to green
and there is no sky

and my head
keeps hitting
this ceiling

.

. . . . .

.

here i am again, doing this again–30 days of poems, hoping the words will come.
hoping hope will come, as well.

.

schooled

so many lessons
not learned

the test of humanity

times up
put down your pencil

pass or fail

your presence
required

.

. . . . .

.

here i am again, doing this again–30 days of poems, hoping the words will come.
hoping hope will come, as well.

.

imprimatur

beneath
a freshly-stitched
quilt of snow

a garden
plots

revenge

.

. . . . .

.

here i am again, doing this again–30 days of poems, hoping the words will come.
hoping hope will come, as well.

.

the dead fox

kitten
curled in a ball
at the side of the road
has been there
for a week
now

yesterday
the turkey vultures
arrived

squawking rudely at me
as i skirted by:

circle!

circle!

circle!

before rising
into deaf grey sky

.

. . . . .

.

here i am again, doing this again–30 days of poems, hoping the words will come.
hoping hope will come, as well.

.

sitting with it

because
today

that’s my best

offer

.

. . . . .

.

here i am again, doing this again–30 days of poems, hoping the words will come.
hoping hope will come, as well.

.

green

is suddenly
everywhere

like fear and
purple anxiety

this rainbow
kaleidoscope
of days

perpetually
shifting

a mosaic

of all things
human

.

. . . . .

.

here i am again, doing this again–30 days of poems, hoping the words will come.
hoping hope will come, as well.

.

shifting dynamics

the way we

fix a flat tire
without any yelling

(mostly)

and cook dinner
together
same as always

but different

and miss
everyone
all the time

even each other

and keep passing
this ball of hope
back and forth

between us

.

. . . . .

.

here i am again, doing this again–30 days of poems, hoping the words will come.
hoping hope will come, as well.

.

in numbers

we stand

marking lives
with calendars

60 years
eighty

2 years
fifty-five

just some of the
birthdays
we celebrate this month

in spirit

apart

with love

but no hugs

.

. . . . .

.

here i am again, doing this again–30 days of poems, hoping the words will come.
hoping hope will come, as well.