Beauty

. Esperanza Enticing in her yellow-bell couture, __She shimmers like the sun. With flirty puffs of pollen-pomp allure, __Her blossoms trumpet fun. She laces air with threads of scent as pure __As pledges...

. In the Name of Whose God “If only it were all so simple! If only there were evil people somewhere insidiously committing evil deeds, and it were necessary only to separate them from the rest of us and...

. La Vie en Rose  I came across that daft old ditty “Tiptoe Through the Tulips”And wondered why its lyrics didn’t rhyme “tulips” with “true lips.”I’ve learned, you see, that botany brings...

. Predawn High Sierra Hike The new-moon, star-lit darkness does not hide The beauty that surrounds me on the trail, As silhouettes of trees and mountains guide My feet into the wilderness like braille. For...

. A Ballad of Fortune "Be brave now, my darlin', We're migrating West! Let's pack up our wagon And then take a rest. Tomorrow we're starting--- At sunrise, is best." "But, Jimmy, I'm frightened," His young...

. To Truth ---in memory of Charlie Kirk (1993 – 2025) You fly above the flap and fray,Beyond the stir of earthy air.On dauntless tongue, you find the way__To spread your care. Your song is bright and bold...

. Pamela’s Garden You’ll find her in the garden every day,Her comfort and her confidence so bright.Among the dahlias purple stemmed bouquetHer radiance reflects an inner light. She doesn’t care for those...

. Another North The Megalopolis just north of here Rumbles and heaves and slumbers not at all, Though I at evening am not so near To be afflicted by its charmless call. Cicadas’ speech spreads over me this...

. Why She Broke Up with Him Not long before their college graduation, His bright and beautiful four-year girlfriend, With no more than a sudden conversation, Brought their long-happy romance to an end. The...

. Thy Servant Elizabeth _“Well-done, unswerving servant,” _All the church bells rang _On all the roads of England, _While all the angels sang _Above the long procession _That formed her funeral; _The car...

. Hope By no means has my hope turned to despair. I’ve not the wakeful nights, the woeful gaze Up at the ceiling as I chew the day’s Disasters and a world beyond repair. I’ve not that inner desolation...

. Sunflower Field _A boundless, isle-less sea of green Bestrewn with yellow starbursts gently swaying--- The heavens mirrored, dazzlingly displayed _Upon a rolling sea of jade Where swells and ripples...

. Spacewalk Around earth’s blue-white marble sphere the black is ancient, soundless, near; starry webs burn in dawnlike glare. A rhythm, the unending drone of the star-work being done beats in my brain. I...

. A Reason for Hope __The sky so bright, __The morning mist, __The inbound flight Back to the items on our list __Are all a part __Of one big scene __That makes the heart A diachronic smithereen __Which...

. To a Most Tempting Pancake “Quae mollis est, amanda est.” (What is soft, is to be loved) ---Libri Matutini (Book of Breakfasts) O golden disc, with cinnamon imbued, Thou float’st in butter, warm and...

. Shackled I crave a morning hit when I rise up, A trifle touch to take the edge away To spur me on to get my coffee cup. Don’t talk while I eat breakfast. Go away. I want a bitty bit of my sweet drug. I do...

. Umbra The blazing height of summer’s day Now darkens to weird quasi-night--- Translucent dusk, half-cloaking gray, Half-veiling darkness pierced by sight. What shapeless cloud was blown astray That dares...

. Inklings Shut off that damn brainwashing, numbing screen!Tonight I did. I reached, opened that book.From sentences, the mind gleans what it means.What happens when we painstakingly look? We visualize and...

. Uxorious? He tried to guard composure as he pressed the new denarius to his chapped lips and unbecoming tears for noblemen slipped privately to stain his cheeks and bed. “Faustina, death entombs a...

. Mary ---a sequel to “Martha," prompted by James A. Tweedie The night grew still, the lamps gave off a hush,And Martha’s footsteps faded down the hall.The coals were low, the herbs gave one last flush...

. Falun Dafa Parade The heartbeat of a marching band lies in the beating drums, The power of a sleeping beast that shakes the ground with thrums. An energy that fills the air and lifts you from your core, The...

. On Having a Little Girl She looks at me with hazel eyes And freckles on her sun-kissed cheeks. These moments, gentle, still, and blest Are ever-anchored in my chest. I tell fair tales to her in bed— Of...

. Snapshots of Oxford---July 20, 2025 The drowsy wasps that kept me on my toes; The groups of foreign students herded by; The constant stop and look, the selfie pose; The intermittent rain, then hot and...

. Mourning Doves Hear the soft coo—a coo that faithful love imparts; Mourning doves, they share as one, two beating hearts. On summer’s eaves of pine, they build their lofty nests; Tender eggs are tucked...

. True Worth Her thoughts do not align with "bigger, better"; A humble mode of living suits her fine. The waning years of life bring contemplation Of what defines a "wealth." What draws the line? It's not to...

. The Power I’ve noticed more and more of late My power to infuriate Is stronger than it’s ever been. I exercise it even when I try to be both dull and sweet And humble, willing, incomplete. Infuriation...

. The Bristlecone Pine For centuries, the stalwart pine has stood __in this unwonted spot. Its shallow roots and resinous hard wood __shield it from drought and rot. __Thin soil, high winds, cold air: it...

. Autumn’s Fairy Tale ーan ode to Yugen The golden eve allures As autumn’s sun illumes, Gleaming in rose subdued. Replacing clouds that consume, The yonder storm forlorn. Upon the fairy leaves, And flora...

. The Dance When Arsis and Thesis met on the dance floor, one bowed to the other, the other implored: “Let’s strike up the band now with haste and due speed. Why wait for the others? We’re all that we...

. Of Cats and Cardinals ---for George Lionel (2005 – 2025) You left us at the hour of the owlWhen shameless moons are far too loud and bold__For one so still and cold---One shrouded in a freshly laundered...

. Five Dappled Things A weave of twigs upon the ground; five eggs, cream white, flecked with gray. An ark dislodged —a callous jay or heartless wind— the nest set down. A slant of sun, an ark of twigs. a...

. Martha “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” ---Martha, Luke 10 In Jericho, the house was washed in white, Where roses climbed around each...

. The Harvest As drops of water drop and drip and drop, Each dripping drop soon fills the deepest crack. But when there is a freeze, they split the rock And once it’s cleft, no hands can pull it back. So...

. Unspoken Moments A sunpatch nap the first warm day of Spring, A curled up kitten sleeping in your lap, A country walk down lanes where robins sing, The surge of joy in every thunderclap And burst of rain...

. Poetic Influences Elements swirling in motion,Music in splashes and streams!Waterfall, wild rushing river,Nature is stirring up dreams. Fog on the shores of illusion,Mixing with mist from the seas.Whispering...

. Vesper At dewfall Pipistrella brings her silent flickering silhouette to haunt the after-glimmerings that linger on the garden yet. And quiet overcomes the sky; and shadow pacifies the night; and indigos...

. Lasting Karma What’s the key to living life that matters? How do we spend this precious time on earth? Listen to the lessons of our fathers ---they illustrate the path from birth to death. So fleeting is...

. The Flower’s Refrain A tender shoot breaks through the ground, Drawn upward by the golden sun; It spreads its quiet leaves around, And grows till warmer days are done. It heeds not time nor wind nor...

. The Pervading Presence The summer gleams in meadow, stream, and hill Beneath the warming sun of mid-July; No sudden sound disturbs the landscape still, Which, sleeping, lies beneath the azure sky. Here...

. On Quantock Hills On Quantock Hills, as Skylarks sing aloft, A humble pilgrim walks on ways of old, In morning light, with air so still and soft, The book held in his hand doth gleam of gold. He sits to rest...