swimming today
butterfly stroke across water
I save two bees
wings dried they fly away
pollinating summer
***
winter left behind
snow and cold gear back East
here season cool and wet
gardens of cabbage
light jacket for rain
***
I snap
the long hose on the faucet
Illegally watering
fruit trees and vegetable beds
water running from the law
***
every day
appointments, shopping, schedules
long hours
back to human service work
without any pay
***
husband
took over shopping and cooking
post-retirement
now I’m so completely well-fed
I can’t stand it
***
sky filled with
illusion of rain clouds
smoke
from faraway forest fires
vultures stitch against the gray
***
forests still call
out my name
hiking
I see more looking down for tripping
than I see upward into the trees
***
my studio
I roll in my chair back and forth
a conjuring
calling imagination down
to the creation of new art
***
Oscar Wilde
dared to live his authentic life
judgement
love that dare not speak its name
prison, isolation, early death
***
tundra swans here for winter
pacific flyway path
ascension
white feathers
instead of snow
***
our chihuahua
slides in the center
a crowbar
between ourselves
and morning cuddles
***
family loved Perry Mason
my uncle watched me
I found Mom’s lipstick
drew on kitchen chairs
no defence could help
***
saving a honeybee
from drowning
backfired
when it stung me
resulting in its death
***
my mineral cabinet
sparkles in rainbows
crystals
reflect aquamarine light
bounce around the room