Imaginary Gardens with Real Toads/ https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-30

To Write is Simply a Mystery to Me

I cannot say I know

For that would not be true

Each little poem

Comes from who knows where

I do not even know what inspires

What is the source of my desire

I simply know I want to write

To put it down

Perhaps it is for safe keeping

Along the way

And maybe just to make notes

Of where I am and what is seen

It happens every now and then

And I never know if it will happen again

Maybe it is just to share with you

The little things life brings to me

April 30, 2019

http://withrealtoads.blogspot.com

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To Stop or Not to Stop, That Is the Question

As a painter

I ask myself all the time

Should I stop, now?

Or should I continue?

…Until I have painted all the life from the painting

Removed all the mystery

Turned the freshness into “stale old bread”

It is hard to quit

Maybe I think, just one more stroke

That will get it

Not wanting to leave any stone unturned

I want to do what I can do

Create a piece of work

Keep the freshness

Stop traffic

And reach satisfaction

April 30, 2019

Note:  I have added a piece I am working on.  The question is always with me.

https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-30 https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-30

Questions -- To Remember Again A Cat Named Floyd

Questions

Life is full of questions

Questions about the future

Questions about the past

Questions without answers

And sometimes we don’t know the questions to ask

We continually ask questions about ourselves

Questions about you

From sun up to sun down

Who is he

Who is he really

What does he mean when he speaks

Are these words, words we have heard before

I read your poem

And wonder what you are saying

What you mean

Questions without end

Like stars in the sky

Too numerous to count

Questions form in the mind

Answers can come from any corner

April 29, 2019
withrealtoads.blogspot.com/Poems in April - Asking Questio
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April PAD Challenge Day 29/Writers Digest

To Remember Again A Cat Named Floyd

I read your piece about the cat named Floyd

We often think

When animals are so like us

They are amazing creatures

We like that

You speak of his habits

…or where they yours’?

A gentleman

Through and through

Smarter than your average cat

Often, he spoke by the expression on his face

And a beautiful face it was

You gave him shelter

You gave him love

You were his friend in life

He will be with you till the end of your days

He was your companion

Your familiar

You gave him your best

And he, unto you

And that is way of love

It sinks its teeth into your heart

And stays with you

Even in memory

April 29, 2019

https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-29/comment-page-1#comment-4229574

A Song in My Heart/ Photographic Images Reimagined -- Ideas/Wordle 401 -- 2019-april-pad-challenge-day-28

Play for Me - Ian Dooley

https://unsplash.com/photos/oSq5ejr23so

A Song In My Heart

A melody floats through the empty house

The words of the song come back to me

From so long ago

Now only memories

Yet memories so clear

It all could be happening today

The sun shinning

The empty house

The water running in the shower

This isn’t our house

For we shall never have a house

Together

You have built a life

And I as well

We are as close today

As we shall ever be

Still I keep the memory 

Stored in a tiny place

Shadowed from the bright light of day

A song in my heart

April 28, 2019

withrealtoads.blogspot.com/Poems in April - Photographic Images Reimagined

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Ideas

You throw the cast over and over
With a grin on your face
Put it exactly where you want
Practice to develop skill

You wait for hours
You wait for the mouse
You watch and wait
Never tire of the task

What ideas are really worth our attention?
Creative ideas
Kind ideas
Ideas, never conjured before

You are the overseer of your ideas
Like a factory you crank them out
One after the other
Unfortunately most are the same

What will diminish you?
It is your ideas
When you think small
You are

April 28, 2019

https://sundaywhirl.wordpress.com/Wordle 401
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An Answer for Every Season

In all seasons we seek the answer

Is there only one answer?

Or are there many?

April 28, 2019

https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-27

withrealtoads.blogspot.com/In a Station of the Metro -- https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-27/comment-page-1#comment-4229114

Children at Play

The boy in the sailor cap

Mourners gather in the rain

April 27, 2019 

withrealtoads.blogspot.com/In a Station of the Metro

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Go West

The exact direction unknown

Yet, I travel west

Follow the sun

Through the shadow of the valley

Each has his own journey

Much will happen along the way

Keep your eyes on the horizon

Celebrate each sunset

The journey could be long

It will happen as it happens

There is no preparation you can make

That will make the journey easier

If you had it all to do over

You would probably do it the same

Life is but a rodeo

Ride the bull until the bell rings

April 27, 2019

https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-27/comment-page-1#comment-4229114

Reboot, Rewind, Recycle, Rebirth - Poems in April/imaginary gardens with real toads -- Evening Song/https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-26

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Reboot, Rewind, Recycle, Rebirth - Poems in April

Reboot, Rewind, Recycle, Rebirth

We reboot, rewind, recycle, rebirth

And we find it is all to be done again

It happens with the landscape

As the seasons change

It happens in our lives

As the seasons of our lives change

I am not sure it can happen at will

Rather it happens over time

We accept what happens in our lives

We grow older

We lose the ones we love

Others behave in ways that are difficult

Perhaps it is all about adjustments

And accommodations

As life takes its hairpin turns

We reboot, rewind, recycle, rebirth

April 26, 2019

http://withrealtoads.blogspot.com/Reboot, Rewind, Recycle, Rebirth - Poems in April
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Evening Song

The day slips away

Like sand through the hourglass

The colors become richer

Tiny lights appear in darkened windows

Evening song begins

Suddenly stars appear

Much is lost in shadow

The day becomes magic

The world comes alive

Animals that share our world

Awake

Begin their day

Move silently on pathways dark

While we watch

Strain our eyes to see

Sing the evening song to ourselves

April 26, 2019

https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-26

withrealtoads.blogspot.com/Kerry Says ~ Let's Be Imagists! -- In Exile/https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-25

http://imaginarygardenswithrealtoads.blogspot.com/Kerry Says ~ Let's Be Imagists! 

Kerry’s challenge, was to follow the advice of Carl Jung: “The point is you start with any image…”.  I thought it would be fun to look at my own work.   As the artist I will try to tell you what I see….

Kachinas, Kabuki Dancers, Sentries, or Guards

Sometimes when looking at a photograph

It is hard to know what you are looking at

This image is made up of five paintings

Works on watercolor paper

The images are based on collage

Then they are taken through a process 

Removed at least three times from the original

These verticals make me think of Kachinas

Native American Gods

Maybe all tribes have them

But especially the Hopi

They dress in colorful adornments

The artist is not saying they are Kachinas

Rather they remind her of Kachinas

Or Japanese Kabuki dancers

Or, sentries or guard

The colors slam against each other

Without rhyme or reason

The viewer might choose a color

Maybe red

And then follow it through the paintings

You will see, it meets many different

Circumstances

Just as we do each day

There is room for the random or unexpected

It is my goal to offer paintings

That the viewer has not seen before

To offer an adventure the viewer has not had

My goal is to entertain you

April 25, 2019

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In Exile

In exile is where I am

Where waves crash on shore

One after the other

Memories are my companions

Still there is always tomorrow

The unknown

Almost unthinkable

A pathway of loneliness

We flew together

We traveled to Japan

To New York City

We shared breath

The day came

Now you are gone

It is only I who remains

…In exile

April 25, 2019

https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-25
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poets united/poetsunitedmidweekmotif ~ almondblossoms,by vincentvangogh:AnEkphrasticPoem -- Completely Exhausted/https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-24

Wikipedia  Almond Blossoms  Vincent van Gogh

Almond Blossoms

I think there is no painter

Who could look 

At Vincent van Gogh’s paintings

And not wonder at the skill

His use of color

He painted himself right into the work

He made the world a better place

Because he painted

April 24, 2019

poets united/poetsunitedmidweekmotif ~ almondblossoms,by vincentvangogh:AnEkphrasticPoem

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Completely Exhausted

The morning finds me in a fog

Hard to get to sleep last night

When at last I slept

I think I traveled many miles

What an adventure

For this morning I am 

Completely exhausted

In the silence of the bright sunshine

Last night my mind raced

As if it was the last time

Going over what happened in the past

What I did and didn’t do

Creating different endings

To my stories

Or new stories

To try out

April 24, 2019

https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-24

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A Scary Story/withrealtoads.blogspot.com/The Tuesday Platform: Gather around for some ghost stories (Poems in April ~ Day 23) --Nothing in Life is Free/ https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-23

A Scary Story

Often is it not what we can see

In the pure daylight

Not the “bump” in the dark

That frightens us

The fear comes from our own mind

That little voice

That terrorizes us

“What if it is cancer”

“What if I die”

“What if I lose all I have”

Oh, the worries we can conjure

When in fact

The day is sunny

All is well

April 23, 2019

Note:  I think my Grandmother

Called it to “borrow trouble.”

withrealtoads.blogspot.com/The Tuesday Platform:  Gather around for some ghost stories (Poems in April ~ Day 23)

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Nothing in Life is Free

Life, given so freely

Once I wasn’t

Now I am

But to live each day

There is a price to pay

I wouldn’t say it was free

You never know what the 

Toll taker will ask

One day becomes another

And at the end of time

You will be able to calculate the cost

For each it will be different

Nothing in life is free

April 23, 2019

https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-23

withrealtoads.blogspot.com/Beeware of Poor Substitutions! -- https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-22

Beware of Poor Substitutions !

Waiting Your Return

I sit in the tall grass

Watch for you on the road

I am alert to every sound

It has been ten days
And I will remain here

Waiting for you to return

April 22, 2019

2019 April PAD Challenge: Day 22

A correspondence poem:

Just a note to catch you up

The livestock survived the flood

Unfortunately, the folks next door didn’t

We expect new neighbors soon

Let us hear from you

How are the kids

And your dog Blue

We would like to get away for awhile

But much to do on the farm

Yours’ Truly

Mom and Dad

https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-22

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http://imaginarygardenswithrealtoads.blogspot.com/Poems in April: Tree Mythology -- https://sundaywhirl.wordpress.com/

An Old Vietnam Myth

Long ago in a land faraway

In the beginning when people die

They were buried at the food of a certain tree

Called Long Blo

After a while they rose from the dead

Full grown men and women

They peopled the earth

And all lived in one town

Under the presidency of the first parents

A certain lizard was vexed

By too many people

He suggested to the grave diggers

“Don’t bury the dead at the base of the Long Blo tree,

Bury them at the foot of the Long Khung

They will not come back to life

Let them die outright and be done with it

The hint was taken

From that day men have not come to life again”

So goes the myth of the Soul Tree

In that land faraway, Vietnam

https://japanesemythology.wordpress.com/tag/trees-of-life/

April 21, 2019

Poems in April: Tree Mythology

http://imaginarygardenswithrealtoads.blogspot.com/Poems in April: Tree Mythology

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 I Can Fly, Too 

  

I sit on the ridge
Overlooking the valley
Springtime brings new life
After the dead of winter

Trees covered with new-green leaves
The valley appears like a park
Suddenly a covey of quail
Hidden among the sage

Take flight – wings extended
Fly away, fly away home
The sky clear and blue like glass
Without limit

Man would like the ability to fly
I am satisfied to have them in my sight
In my mind’s eye
I can fly, too

April 21, 2019

https://sundaywhirl.wordpress.com/
Wordle 400

https://www.imaginarygardenswith real toads.com/2019/04/weekend-mini-challenge-in-april-three.html -- https://www.writersdigest.com/whats-new/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-20/comment-page-1#comment-4227489

Weekend Mini-Challenge, in April: Three Spring Shorts

Flowers no longer bloom

In my garden

Rocks have replaced them

Hollyhocks come up like weeds

They are well suited to this clime

Pink like the inside of a lizard's cheek

I never bought you flowers

And yet all should belong to you

You loved them so

April 20, 2019

http://withrealtoads.blogspot.com/2019/04/weekend-mini-challenge-in-april-three.html

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From the Mesa

Most days are clear and bright

The sun usually shines 

And that is how it is 

In the land of enchantment

The nights are also bright

Stars sparkle 

Too many to count

Stars in every direction

The air usually crisp and clear

Even in Summer

The air comes down from the mountains

To refresh the valley

Mares’ tails fill the blue sky

It is spring

A time of renewal

Great expectations

April 20, 2019

https://www.writersdigest.com/whats-new/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-20/comment-page-1#comment-4227489

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A Love Poem...or Not/https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-19/withrealtoads.blogspot.com/Micro Poetry ~ "I am my own muse ..."

A Love Poem…or Not

I have known you long

Loved you the same

The egg fell from the shelf

And broke apart

Tried to fix it

Without success

All the King’s horses and all the King’s men

Could not put it right again

One wonders how these things happen?

I think it is misunderstandings

But if one chooses to misunderstand

What is the answer?

April 19, 2019

https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-19___________________________________________________________________

Micro Poetry ~ "I am my own muse ..."

"I am my own muse, the subject I know best."
Frida Kahlo 

If It’s Good Enough for Frida, It is Good Enough For Me

Alone I am

Alone I remain

My own muse

Waiting for your return

While waiting

I will hum a tune

Write a line

Fold paper into a bird

Fly away, fly away home

Alone I am

Alone I remain

My own muse

April 19, 2019

withrealtoads.blogspot.com/Micro Poetry ~ "I am my own muse ..."

https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-18

http://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-day-18

Little is Known

This morning finds the sky clear

Not a cloud in sight

The sun streaks across the mesa

Looking out over the sage filled land

I am reminded of the sea

Waves rising and settling

All is quiet

There is no movement I can see

Yet, the day is filled with expectation

The report is ready

And will be released soon

Time drags

I hear the clock in the hall

Slowly tick the minutes

Soon even we will be able to read the report

Of which little is known

April 18, 2019

https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/poetic-asides/2019-april-pad-challenge-Day 18

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Bits of Inspiration ~ Poems in April ~ Bell

A Day at the Museum

There is a day that stands out

A day in Los Angles

I took the bus to downtown

I wasn’t sure where to get off

 I rode the bus

To the end of the line

The sun was shining

And seemed to light each step

Walking through an unfamiliar neighborhood

I heard the sound of a gong

At a small temple 

The bells rang out

It was the end of the line

For someone’s dear

Friends had gathered

To say a last goodbye

It was one person’s final song

Another has a wonderful day

I found the museum

Spent time with Joseph Beuys

April 18, 2019

http://withrealtoads.blogspot.com/2019/04/bits-of-inspiration-poems-in-april-bell.html