The Disillusion of Snow/imaginary gardens with real toads

Springtime by S. Anderson



The Disillusion of Snow

A heavy blanket of snow

On the ground

Today, more is promised

Beneath the snow

Old wounds are healing

Dissolving into the earth

The limited moisture awaited

The year that is ending

Has been a hard one

As hard as a stone

Lodged beneath the heart

The morning silent

It is as if all life

Has gone underground

Like the bulbs in the garden

Healing happens out of sight

All waiting new life

Waiting for spring

The garden colorful

Bird song in the air

When winter is over

And spring comes

Will we remember 

These last days of snow

December 28, 2018

The Last Poem/imaginary gardens with real toads

The Last Poem

Words cobbled together

Lose old meanings

Take on new meanings

It is a birth of sorts

We change the numbers

We write on our checks

Look for the meanings

In a barren land

We agree, things are not 

What we would want them to be

But still, you are here

And I am, as well

We look together to the new year

With hope and expectations

It will not be from black to white

Rather a slow change

Like a snail in the garden 

Leaving a trail behind

Keeping track of where we are going

And where we have been

December 26, 2018

A Woman Gives the Full Moon Names/imaginary gardens with real toads

A Woman Gives the Full Moon Names

Native tribes have names

For the full moon

To mark the passing of time

A woman could give the full moon

Names to mark the passing of her life

Beginning with the time of birth moon

Little girl moon

School begins moon

Time of the young woman moon

Time of marriage moon

Time of children moon

Time of the full woman moon

Time of old age moon

Time of death moon

The circle 

Of the moon complete

December 23, 2018

An Empty Chair/imaginary gardens with real toads

An Empty Chair

Something that was there

But isn’t

I stand patiently

Waiting for your return

Sometimes I hear your footsteps on the stair

Or I can hear you walking about

On the floor above

I hear your voice calling for me

I hear your laughter

When busy playing alone

Or I can even hear you

Drawing quietly in your room

So many nights I waited past midnight

Sick with worry

But each time you returned home

Safe and well

Sometimes I even catch sight of you

Just a glance

As you disappear behind a tree

Playing hide and seek

You were so special to me

It is hard to believe you are not here

The years pass quickly

Your chair, like my heart, remains empty

December 20, 2018

Christmas in Espanola Valley/dVerse

Christmas in Espanola Valley

Sunday Afternoon

The bright morning sun

Now drops to the western horizon

The day’s light slips into the cracks and canyons

Shadows have grown long

The windmill quiet as if waiting

The sky cloudless

There are strong contrasts of lights and darks

The outlines of the mountains

Drawn hardedge

Their shapes defined

The limbs of the bare trees

Create patterns of lace

Against an empty pale blue sky

Traffic lights blink

The ribbon of cars slows down

Christmas trees

Cut this morning 

Lean against a white truck

In the parking lot

Each looks a little forlorn

Waiting to be selected

A large Christmas sign of red candles

Lighted at the top like flames

Blazes Merry Christmas

To Sunday afternoon travelers

December 17, 2018

The Christmas List/poets united poets pantry -- the sunday whirl

The Christmas List

The North wind howled
At my door
Dropping the lock
I invited him in

He had come to play
He whirled around the
Sparkling tree
He played with the train

Touched each gaily wrapped gift
Examined the tags
There was no gift for him
The smile dropped from his face

He spun around to leave
Then he took a folded piece of paper
From his pocket
It was a list

A list of things that could be done
To make the world a better place
It was his Christmas list
With downcast eyes…he said, “Maybe next year?”

December 16, 2018

Wordle 382:  wind, howled, neck, hundred, play, touch, shop, train, drop, spin, plan, lucky

Working Without a Prompt/dVerse

Working Without a Prompt

Is a little bit like

Flying without a trapeze

Or…finding your way

Without a compass

Of course, it can be done

Most anything can be done

But to find the will to do it

Is the challenge

The sky clear

Low lying clouds

In the valley

Wind chimes hang limp

There is a sense of waiting

So much of life spent waiting

And then

When the incident happens

We are unprepared

Have no plan

As Barbara Kingsolver says

We are like chickens

When it rains,

We think it will always rain

When we are told the outcome

It isn’t what we want

Therefore, we won’t accept

Have no idea how to accept

Accepting is a hard lesson

One not easy to grasp

December 14, 2018

Another Ordinary Morning/dVerse -- In praise of ordinary things

Another Ordinary Morning

Another ordinary morning

The sun rises in the same place

Lights the day

The wind howled all night

The morning reveals a skiff of snow

The flakes huddle together

So, few I could count them

The studio waits for me

I enter and feel the warmth

My kitten curls by the fire

My tools in their place

They wait for me

Ready to begin the day

Plans made the day before

Small paintings pinned to the wall

Reveal the hand of the painter

A lover of color

A language spoken without sound

The message revealed for you alone

The day filled with ordinary things

Taken together

Create an extraordinary life

A life of exploration

Success and failure

December 13, 2018

Unique/imaginary gardens with real toads

Unique

It is so sad

When anyone hides who they are

Or thinks they should

All the things that make someone special

I wonder if he knew how special his is

From head to toe

Would he continue to play

Hide and seek?

How hurtful it must be

To find the me of me

Needs to hide

Unseen

Not good enough

A little less

Different

And that is the very thing

We should all wish to be

Come into our glory

Dressed in a lizard suit

Scales glisten

Empowering to know just who we are

Even when we don’t know where we are going

Usually we know where we have been

Unique as a fingerprint

December 13, 2018

Peace on Earth/poets united midweek motif -- Peace on Earth

Peace on Earth/poets united Midweek Motif - Peace on Earth

Peace on Earth

What could this mean

What would it look like?

Calm

Serene

Tranquil

All wars have ended

Children no longer frightened or hungry

It all seems simple enough

Perhaps there will be a great leader

That will decree it so

No longer sending young men to their death

With our history

There is not much hope for such

We are cranky human beings

We feed on the blood of the young

We stand and cheer for our side

Without thought of the “other”

War like a football game

Is necessary for us

Few of us know the history of our land

Or our people

We are good 

At pointing a boney finger at others

Like children we want to be sure 

We get what we think is ours

Our share (and then some)

We are entitled

If you don't consider what we have done...

We are good people, always kind

We are an example of empathy

There is not much appetite for “Peace on Earth”

December 11, 2018

An Honest Conversation/dVerse

An Honest Conversation

Yes, I think you are right

When you say poetry

Is more honest

Perhaps poetry is a mirror

Not a fun-house mirror

With its many distortions

No, a common-sense mirror

That hangs in your room

Perhaps your most honest friend

It will show you exactly how you look

Will show all of your little flaws

The tiny wrinkles around you lips

It sees if your jeans are too tight

And reports accordingly

It sees your eyes dart away

No… look your mirror right in the face

Take the criticism

That is meant only for you

And take the compliments

“Not bad for an old girl”

Bring your tea over

Let’s sit and chat

Can you take the honesty

That is offered

Sometimes it is hard 

To have that conversation

With yourself

And your mirror

December 11, 2018

A Holiday Greeting II/imaginary gardens with real toads

A Holiday Greeting  II

A little over the hill

She stands on the corner

With her cardboard sign

Life has not been gentle

Low light

Late afternoon

Snow is predicted

Where will she sleep

I offer what I have

And a holiday greeting

She returns a big smile

December 4, 2018

Empty Chairs/poets united poets pantry -- the sunday whirl world 380

Empty Chairs

What is missing
What is this entity
Which creates space
But is not there?

There is evidence
That is was here
Like an animal
Leaves evidence 

Where it makes it’s bed in the grass
What is the potential
Of finding this missing something?

Does it leave a scent in the air?

This feeling of something missing
Rolls over me
Leaves all wounds bare

Sometimes it is hard to decide

Is there really something missing?
Or is it just an everyday emptiness
I feel…

To overcome the feeling 

Would be a victory
Perhaps it is just a feeling of loss
A festive table set with empty chairs?

No one expected

December 9, 2018

Wordle 380:  missing, potential, with, bare, victory, air, evidence, decide, rolling, me, lose, entity

Merry Christmas to All/imaginary gardens with real toads

Merry Christmas to All

There is a sound of tearing

As the band-aid is ripped 

From the wound

Long ago bound

He stays in his room

Shuns people

The shades drawn

He is Christmas past

Perhaps it is best not to bother him

Allow him to sulk

Feel sorry for himself

He has plenty of reasons

Tick them off like a grocery list

Each year we decorated the tree

Attended church

Santa would arrive

Put stockings on the foot of the bed

Mom and Dad

The whole family around

Christmas is different now

Just you and me

And yet we blow smoke

Keep the fire going

Hold hands in the dark

No, it is not the same

Nothing is

You hold me warm

We kiss good night

Me in my kerchief 

You in your cap

Our hopes are for the new year

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night

December 5, 2018

the Secret ingredient of Friendship/dVerse

The Secret Ingredient of Friendship

What is it about a friendship

That lasts for years

Why with one and not another

Why do we like to have one close

Is it the way one looks

The way one acts

Or is it just that I know your name

What is it about you

That in your presence

I feel all warm and fuzzy

Hours fly by

Our conversation is never finished

Over the years it continues

Always starting where we left off

The distance between us is wide

Yet you are always in my heart

December 5, 2018

A Holiday Greeting/imaginary gardens with real toads

A Holiday Greeting

A little over the hill

She stands on the corner 

With her cardboard sign

Life has not been gentle

She is bent forward

In her attempt 

To stand straight

Walk gracefully

The light is low

Late afternoon clouds form

It will probably snow tonight

I wonder where she will sleep

I roll down my window

Offer what I have

And a holiday greeting

She returns a big smile

The air cold

The winds chill

She pulls her blanket

Tight around her 

December 4, 2018

You Draw Your Sword/imaginary gardens with real toads

You Draw Your Sword

I try to capture the scene

My camera at the ready

You won’t keep still

Constantly moving

Constantly drawing your sword

Challenging thought

Causing a scene

You love conflict

It seems everyday 

For the past two years

You seek the limelight

As if anyone could ignore you

Churn the waters

Muddy the view

Cause anxiety

And like a child you always need more

December 3, 2018

In Love, With Deep Colors/the sunday whirl -- Poets United poets pantry

Intersections  4/13  10"x10"  Flashe

In Love, With Deep Colors

At first, I didn’t notice the chill
The fire burned in the fireplace
The flames twisting around the logs
Filled the room with the warmth

Of wishes fulfilled
It is that time again
Frost covers the trees
The time of magic is upon us

I find myself slipping
Into that “in-between time”
One year ending
The next about to begin

There is a certain shock
That is the ending of this year
And yet, I feel I hardly know you
Still, these are the final days

There is a certain dread
Of the coming year
Will it be a time
Of mending old wounds

New ideas
New ways of doing things
Will new people fill the empty chairs
Will there be a new lift in my step

Will I be more flexible
Or will I see the world
Through a glass darkly
...I do love the deep colors

December 2, 2018
Wordle 379:    filter

Imaginary gardens with real toads

Sometimes big things happen. Your life is changed in a flash. There is no beginning, no end.  You will continue to live, to breath, in and out.  Yet nothing is as it was before, perhaps there is a hurricane, a flood, your house burns down, or a thousand other calamites that could happen.  It is nothing personal, it just happens. 

Your world has turned gray, all the color has drained away. Was it all written long ago. Destiny wins out.  

I might say

If only I knew

Things would be different

…but would they?

December 1, 2018

In the Cold of Morning...Mourning/imaginary gardens with real toads

In the Cold of Morning…Mourning

A spell of magic broken

Darkness is banished

To hide in gloomy shadows

Dreams persist

Like patches of snow

Hiding under the sage brush

Long after all the other snow

Has melted

In clear light of morning

Like a crystal bell ringing

Across the desert

The vibrations of sound

Travel far in the desert

The sun warms the morning

And the cold heart

Also found under the sage

Still beating

Barely beating

Waiting for twilight

Waiting for your return

November 28, 2019

Snow-Days in November/imaginary gardens with real toads

Snow-Days in November

November is almost over

The door for its leaving

And for December’s coming

Is open

The days are colder now

But mostly the sun shines

The weather still mild

Twice we have seen

The magic of snow

The transformation of 

The landscape

Wrapped in winter white

No snowball fights with you

There was only one time

And you covered me completely

I choose my battles

And don’t enter

Into ones I can’t win

You are far too experienced

Still a boy with a powerful arm

November 27, 2018