just like the novel we have
taken turns reading
your love is as cold as the snow
(falling on cedars)
perhaps not to us
but we can feel its vacuous
chill as you glance sideways
towards them
and we wait
in the hollow of the tree
for the moment when
the snow will stop
and your love will keep us warm
when it’s a drought we curse the sky
when it pours we curse the clouds
when it’s cold we curse the snow
when it’s hot we curse the sun
if we took the time to see
that weather isn’t the enemy
then maybe we wouldn’t curse emptily,
but bask in Mother Nature’s glory
who, just like our own hardworking moms
gives us her products without any qualms
and shows us that sometimes what’s healthy is wanted
that without the need, we will always be haunted.
so when it’s a drought remember the rain
when it pours thank her for fruitful flowers
when it’s cold think of snow-melted rivers that
when it’s hot run cold into swim-ready lakes
and perhaps next time when the rain wrecks your day
or the snow makes your drive go a tad bit astray,
you’ll remember that it’s all for a reason,
that Mother Nature controls every season.
this could be a rainbow
if we ever saw the sun
bright colors all in a row
trying to protect everyone
this could be a rainbow
but we’ll just let it rain
and now here comes the snow!
is it winter all over again?
this could be a rainbow
and we’re laughing like it is
we’re crazy, yes we know
just for a small taste of showbiz
this could be a rainbow
if we measured it by smiles
but we’ll just let it flow
as we walk along our aisles
today we’ve made a rainbow
that shines beneath the clouds
umbrellas and tarps bestow
colorful hope amidst the crowds.
Only in Denver
do we enjoy seventy
degrees and then snow.
Running eight hot miles
is easier than having
to say no to you.
Watching Grease again
I wonder if I’m being
their very best mom.
Screaming loud children
are like daffodils: better
when the sun is out.
Two dark chocolate cakes,
one happy hour, zero
days of school: perfect.
Parents who dislike
teachers should home-school their kids
and stop degrading.
Girls wearing dresses
are rainbows shining brightly
after the downpour.
Family is a gift
and also a sacrifice
that makes us complete.
Television steals
moments that we should share to
make the world better.
Spring is a wild breeze
that ushers out winter’s cold
and blows in summer.
(Inspired by David Whyte)
How do I survive in the fierce heat of living?
by taking her hand within my own
and dashing across the stalemate parking lot
on our way to our next adventure,
plucking up her sisters (trapping their
thrilled screams in boxes)
to ride a bike behind my new two-wheel rider,
to ride a plastic horse for a penny,
to choose another fantasy from the library,
everything free (almost free)
just like the way life was, once,
before we knew better.
How do I survive in the fierce heat of living?
by taking her hand within my own
and dashing into the blue moon night
on our way to our next adventure,
plucking off our clothes (trapping their
tangled mess in piles)
to scream out into the darkness
to roll our nakedness in the snow
to choose another fantasy from our minds,
everything free (almost free)
just like the way life is, now,
because we know better.
I love the way you whisper across the sky
and just as gently touch the skin of the road
in swirls as graceful as ballerinas,
dancing away from the tires that try to pound you.
I love the way you quietly decorate the trees
more picture-perfectly than a white wedding cake,
more idyllic than the solitude of dreamland,
frosting my eyes with your sparkling glory.
I love the way you arrive without arrogance,
sliding in from your silvery satin clouds,
snatching the cold from our hearts and
trapping its truth within each flake.
I love how you slip into conversations
sometimes filled with excitement and joy,
sometimes filled with a terror or fright
that people recall for years to come.
I love how you selflessly offer yourself to the world,
how, catlike, you sneak in and make this time,
this place, a different shade of happiness,
bringing us all a beauty that we could never create.
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