White Elephant win
with every Bingo chiste
bringing laughter, joy
Dirty Bingo
family
Sparkle
finally, a grin
showing nine weeks of fixed teeth
with a shine of pride
Christmas Cookies
he’s no idea
what he’s got himself into
with these crazy girls
cookies are cookies.
we will cut, bake, decorate.
’cause it’s what we do.
arms, metal, ginger:
what is a holiday scent?
molasses. that’s it.
and soft-spun sugar
ready to perfect Christmas
with gingerbread sweets.
COVID Birthday
ice-cold Tuesday night
(ice skating on a weeknight?)
icing on the cake
we must stay outside
we must wear masks, be cautious
we must learn to live
all out of the house?
all the teens out together?
all the miracles
the boy taught himself
the boy had never skated
my boy taught himself
Never Gets Old
almost all love skis
and that’s enough for today
that, and fresh powder
The Tree Savior
some rough beginnings
can end in the perfect way
for a perfect day
Lit
Almost a year ago, we invited this boy home for Christmas because he was living in a youth shelter.
We brought him downtown to see this beautiful tree.
And what a year it has been. Challenging in more ways than we ever thought imaginable, and all of us adjusting to this new life of having a brother and a son in the midst of a pandemic.
Here we are, standing under these same lights. And aren’t they still beautiful?
Even Kitty Creates Art
my little artist
(not so little anymore)
always new designs
creating Christmas
from the tree to ornaments
all hand-made with love
Senior Year Milestone One
dream school acceptance
in the midst of this nightmare
that’s 2020
what next, i wonder?
how will we survive all this
with all that we face?
the box comes early
before breath has settled us
into this next step
Quaranturkey
work interrupted
my man carving the turkey
so my boy stepped in
my girls made the pies
and set the grateful table
(we made this loss work)
just the six of us
celebrating our health
in a health-hell year
Step Write Up 