SOULMATES

I don’t know when we met,

But we did.
It wasn’t any time I remember,
It wasn’t any place that I know.
But we met, grew, knew each other,
Eons ago.
 
And, meeting again,
We have another chance
To grow and know each other.
And when we’re done,
We’ll part,
To meet again.
 
Whatever the guise, we’ll know
For what our eyes can’t tell
Our hearts will see.
When our minds forget
Our souls will not.
For they were joined in that place,
Eons ago.

PER ITALIA

            BELLA ITALIA

Beautiful vistas of luscious land

Enticing views of seas and mountains

Lovely artwork and splashing fountains

Lyrical language I’d love to learn

Andiamo. Let’s go!

Intriguing history and museums to explore

Twisting roads and towns perched on cliffs

Ancient sites of Romans, Etruscans and more

Lazy days in a piazza sampling wine and gelato

Indulging in pizza and heapings of pasta.

Arrivederci (for now) e buona fortuna.

A CHERUB'S TALE

Did you hear about the cherub who lost her wings?
Playing some games amongst other things,
Like chasing through rainbows,
Dancing with butterflies 'n crows,
She hit an archangel with a halo toss
Which ended up being a bit of a loss.
For her wings were clipped short
Which meant, so it said in the report,
That she got a demotion
Or, some might see it a promotion.
She was sent down to earth
To celebrate her birth.
She was born with cute dimples and a mischievous grin
And from the start she fitted right in.
With time she grew beautiful and bright
Still dances with butterflies when they take flight.
And today on her birthday, I would just like to say
“We’re so blessed that you came here to stay.”
So last laugh’s on the archangel way up high.
Cherubs don’t need their wings in order to fly.

Third prize winner in the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 270 Coldwater Seniors Literary Competition, 2022

WRITER'S BLOCK

 

Woke up this morning and my heart sank
Not a thought in head, my mind blank.
And now at this time
Can't find a thing to rhyme.
And what is much worse
Not even blank verse

                  Maybe a limerick will do the trick.

COVID is a nasty, contagious virus
Which has clearly been sent to try us
So please stay home.
You won't be alone
For together we’re going to beat this

 

Stele at the mortuary temple of Merenptah, West Bank, Luxor, Egypt

 

HAIKU 2

 

Jules Massenet - Meditation from Thais for Violin and Piano

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QtGOWemQhY&feature=share&fbclid=IwAR23YLIS4Px0VT3NqCgU1wvxU_Ty52QiSaw75d3okxZc8NMXV5MgE4L2XIU

HEROES

Where to start?
There are too many to count.

Doctors and nurses and front line workers,
dropped into a dystopian nightmare,
their lives torn apart, risking their health
to battle the invisible enemy.

Workers serving our needs
to get food on our tables
to get us power and water 
and ways to stay connected.

These are our heroes,
without fancy capes or super powers
but with  determination and courage
and goodwill to mankind.

But those that stay home
are all heroes too.
The moms and the dads
whose lives are on hold.

And kids; let's not forget kids,
confined without school.
Playgrounds off limits,
their friends out of bounds.

So let's say hooray
to the whole human race that's
pulling together at this "challenging" time.
(Except for some that I won't  name.)

And let's learn some lessons
for when these dangers have passed.

Thanks to all you heroes,
Who are making history today.
Have strength and have patience;
For this too will pass.

FOR RYAN

 Dedicated to the Shtuka family of Beaumont, Alberta

Ryan, you don’t know me.
We have never met, but I know a lot about you.
We have this in common; we both love Sun Peaks,
Where the sun shines most days, and snow falls,
As it should, overnight.
Three mountains leading to the village in the valley,
Bustling with friendly people and lively places to meet and eat.
We could have been at Bottoms together,
But by the time I got there, you had gone.
Disappeared without a trace.

I know you, Ryan, because since that day,
Your mother has posted pictures, videos, stories
And candid introspective thoughts.
I have seen baby pictures, toddler videos
And the handsome young man that you have become.
I know if we met, Ryan, I would like your smile
And the mischievous twinkle in your eyes.
I have cheered from afar, your lovely sisters who,
By the way, are doing very well.
They are champions in my eyes. They would make you proud.
Your parents are our heroes. I’m sure they’re yours too.
We marvel at their strength, their humor and their truth.

You would likely be embarrassed if you knew
That a cute green dinosaur has become a symbol for your search.
And you might feign impatience at the fuss that is being made.
MISSING: Ryan Shtuka billboards on highways,
and posters pinned in stores.

A community has grown, Ryan, with your parents at the helm,
To keep the search relentless until you are back home.
There are no sign posts or directions
To know which way to go, on the continuing journey,
to bring Ryan home.

TUESDAY FEELINGS

I listen to Neil Diamond 
and my heart is full of world love,
world peace, world joy, well wishes.
I am omnipotent and flowing over with Tuesday energy.
Inside I am running, jumping.
Reaching for new horizons.
I see all, I want all, I am all.
(my mind fills with sound)
 
I sing, I soar, I rise, I fly.
Thank you for the colour of music,
The colour of colour on which I feast.
Each morsel, a banquet. I am filled.
The music is magic. The music is colour:
a painter’s brush sweeping the beat
across the page of me.
I feast.
I am a coloured canvas bursting at the seams.
I am thankful for the colour of music;
I am thankful for the colour in me.

For Marj & Vi with whom I shared inspirational Tuesdays, coffee and munchies, for almost 20 years)

MESSAGE FROM ABOVE

 

I think that’s writing in the sky,
way up high.
No alphabet that I know,
but even so…
If we could read what Nature pens
With our human lens,
there’s a message we can find.
The words I see, are these 
“Be kind.”

Be kind to the earth, and for all you’re worth,
Be kind to others, sisters and brothers,
children, friends and strangers too.
And also of course, be kind to you.

Breathe in- Breathe out.

This poem should be read aloud in one breath, 
taken after the first line

LET'S TAKE THE TIME

(deep breath)

To meditate

And contemplate
Our current state
While we wait 
To learn our fate
And set the date
To open the gate
And CELEBRATE.

(3 deep breaths)

NAMASTE

WINDS OF CHANGE

Yesterday morning a low mist rose from the lake,
rolling quickly towards us, enveloping everything,
blanking out the world around us.
Isolating us.
Then a sudden shift in the wind, blowing gusts of hard rain
angling across the windows, chasing the mist, dispersing it
until it slinks back wraith-like, merging with the lake.
Heavy clouds crowd in from the north, blotting out the light.
Lashings of rain, swirling wind make the trees bow earthwards.
Everything suddenly sodden.
And then with another flip of Nature’s wrist,
A break in the clouds and for a glorious moment, the sun shines through.
A patch of blue sky around the halo of sunshine.
But not for long.

Clouds swallow the sun, rain pelts down.
The wind angrily broils everything into a blur.
churning across the lake, still holding its winter ice,
until with loud cracking sounds, the ice weakens and splinters.
Now there is open water.
Open water where the geese can land on their homeward journey.
And on the lawn, two robins hop, ignoring the wind, the rain and the scudding clouds.

REFLECTIONS ON A WALL

Mural painted on Royal Canadian Legion, Branch 13, Toronto
by John Hood, 1991

A thousand words or more are penned

Beneath the coloured coats of ever marching men.

The shades of horse and soldiers tell stories of the past.

while brushed reflected light mirrors moments of today.

The wall, once grey and silent, drums now with vibrant life.

Destiny summoned closer by steady beating feet.

The hopes and dreams and sorrows of long forgotten men

Are captured here forever in a tapestry of time.

REBOOT

Frozen

Everything closed, nothing moving

Time arrested, held at bay.

Waiting,

Waiting.

 When will it be time to reboot?

HAIKU

 

Flocks of geese fly north

loudly announcing themselves

and heralding spring