NaPoWriMo Day Fourteen

Posted on April 14, 2021 by Mary Beth Frezon

It was a lovely day to go out and look at clouds and stuff today. Spring is coming. Too late to turn back now except temporarily.

Today was warm in an april way
tonight cooler but no frost
and tomorrow night – no joke –
a chance of heavy snow.
what does the world that
has no weatherman to guide them do?
In truth most days I open the door
and decide if I need a sweater
At night the window may be closed
if the cats are curled up tight.
Today the daffodils shone bright
and tomorrow will be another chance
to watch them nod to passing birds
After that – all bets are off
here at the edge of New England.

and just because it’s good for you.

Here in New England
we take a dose of winter
just before summer.

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NaPoWriMo Day Thirteen

Posted on April 13, 2021 by Mary Beth Frezon

I went outside to sit with the daffodils today. It may snow. That’s right. It may snow. Won’t be the first time the daffodils have been beaten down in their glory but it seemed a good idea to sit with them and paint a bit today… just in case.

For several years I’ve been attached to the news – aggregating it, summarizing it, passing it along, being horrified by it at times. Since January I’ve tried to cut back some. I’ve eliminated a couple subscriptions and try not to spend so much time reading but here we are again needing to put our shoulder to the work. Today’s NaPoWriMo prompt was worth a ponder so here you go –

There it is, all above the fold,
large letters announcing the latest
I take a slurp of coffee to prepare
and push my glasses up by habit
I don’t know how they did it
but that idea of all men and women
being entitled to life, liberty,
the pursuit of some sort of happiness –
that seems to have caught on at last.
Legislation accepted, approved, amended,
ratified and sent back
signed sealed delivered
and there it is, held up to the world.
We’re going to try this again
only this time like we mean it.
The caption declares that all
the people in the photo are happy
maybe I think, maybe they are happy
but now our real work begins.
I take another swig of coffee.

We are all equal.
And it’s time to act like it.
we stand together.

Posted in coffee and tea, Do the Work, en plein air, gardens and flowers, good causes, haiku, life around us, NaPoWriMo, Poetry and Lyrics, Ripped from the headlines, taking time to look, the creative process, watercolor | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

NaPoWriMo Day Twelve

Posted on April 12, 2021 by Mary Beth Frezon

Grey day
all of the world’s gold
is pushing upward
from the wet and fragrant ground
swelling and thrown against
grey shifting skies.
Rainy days are not unwelcome
even in the midst of mud season
when lit by this glow
most treasured, most fugitive.

Every year the words of Frost ring true about nature’s gold. Today it was so colorful, along with the maple buds and other first showings of life against a very gray and rainy day. Take note!

I cannot hold this
first gold-green of all willows
showing life anew

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NaPoWriMo Day Eleven

Posted on April 11, 2021 by Mary Beth Frezon

I did a bunch of things unrelated to poetry for most of the day. I guess that’s most days. I did end up with a bowl of a really tasty bean soup made with some leftover lamb and some smoked turkey bones I had – that made a good dinner. Worked on the web-based project. Sometimes troubleshooting is more like shooting-a-ghost-in-a-hypothetical-barrel. As in – no answers found. But work arounds we got in plenty so it’s all good.

Regret

why didn’t I finish my coffee?
It was the perfect temp
and so full of hope
once.

and a short version of a short poem:

forgotten coffee –
what started out so perfect
and full of hope – cold.

Apparently I took no photos other than of my soup so here’s a view from last year.

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NaPoWriMo Day Ten

Posted on April 10, 2021 by Mary Beth Frezon

The other day, the NaPoWriMo prompt was to re-read a bit of Spoon River Anthology and write something in the voice of someone who has died. That wasn’t the day for me to do it but today, I took that idea and my remembrance of my Junior High (remember when grades 7 and 8 were Junior High rather than Middle School?) Science teacher and went with it. Still in progress but here it is. And what a wonderful day full of sun and flowers and birds today was.

In my front tree and across the road
the birds each in their own tongue
are calling, hoping, seeking
telling how great it is to be a bird
how wonderful this kind lady feeds them
how warm the sun, how good to be back in town
at least that’s what I think they say
It’s true I don’t really know
the meaning of it all is
but my junior high science teacher
Mrs Sheehey thought it was good to learn
about birds and bird songs and taught us.
Sometimes she’d spout bird talk thus:
who cooks for YOU? – holding out the last
who cooks for YOU? Barred owl, she’d say, then
Peter! Peter! Peter! – and wait for
someone to call out – a cardinal!
Not suggesting the topics of conversation
she hoped we’d pay attention and now I do
and this time of year, birds and song-full
I think of her, imagining her nearby
looking up into the tree with me,
her whistling and me, without whistle,
calling Phoebe… Phoebe… Phoebe…
uncertain who is returning my call.

Today I got up relatively early and headed off on an errand to the post office. Received notice that an appearance from fall 2020 was rescheduled to fall 2022. LOL hope they send me a reminder!

Thought I’d swing by and get some toner for printer but saved that for another day.

Lots of action in the front yard all day.

I call ‘chickadee’
a bird calls ‘chickadee-dee-dee’
we enjoy our chat.

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