Tuesday, April 30, 2019

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

Monday, April 29, 2019

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






Sunday, April 28, 2019

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


Play for Me - Ian Dooley


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

Saturday, April 27, 2019

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










Friday, April 26, 2019

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

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







Thursday, April 25, 2019

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


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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Wednesday, April 24, 2019

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


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Tuesday, April 23, 2019

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

Monday, April 22, 2019

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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Sunday, April 21, 2019

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


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

Saturday, April 20, 2019

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



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


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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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Friday, April 19, 2019

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___________________________________________________________________

"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 ..."

Thursday, April 18, 2019

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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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






Not Just A Cup

  Not Just a Cup       Southern born Not a tea drinker Always coffee For me   Although I often find  Bitter taste Of the dark brew A bit muc...