May 3 2020
Rural landscape surroundings
A walkers delight away
Backyard fences strung low
Say our heaven sits here neighbor
Beyond that...Ag-fields stretch out
Flat as pancakes
March manicured - planted, growing
In Earth’s rich Willamette Valley soil
Some for grape, grain or…
Apr 5 2020
Heavy wooden shutters stand open.
Warm air and July sun stream into the room
of the convent, my refuge for three weeks.
At the window I inhale the unfamiliar
countryside of Umbria: the scent of ripe fruit and earth
the…
Apr 5 2020
The commotion was getting louder. Cautiously looking around the corner, I couldn’t see anyone in the kitchen. What was happening? My eyes were drawn to the junk drawer. Could it be a mouse or worse a rat? I cautiously opened…
Apr 5 2020
It happens when you’re not looking.
Sometime after the middle and towards the end
when it’s easy to miss the fine silver thread
waving from the middle of your chin.
Unlike the shallows and the crags
the Rorschachs that shift
…
Apr 5 2020
Dogs are the best,
of this I can attest.
They love you no matter what,
even when you’re in a rut.
I like to watch them run and play,
they show us how to enjoy each day.
They don’t turn…
Mar 10 2020
I don’t know why but I had the strangest feeling I should walk over, unlock the latch, lift the heavy arched window, and look down. That’s when I saw the jumbled mess of it, far below having landed directly next…
Mar 10 2020
The rattle of cattle bells
Rings clear across the valley
As spring opens-up
Her high green pastures above
The steady rush - the splendid elation
When cowboys sing without hesitation
And promise their dogies
Sweet natural grasses they’ll love
Can’t…
Mar 10 2020
George Johnson and his beautiful young wife, Robin, had been married 24 years. They were in love as only two can be, and George treated Robin as well as any husband ever could. But this couple was not very well-off…