along a river
this fairy tale ferry stop
has stood a beacon
in muddy waters
kids get to be kids all day
while mamas paddle
nature is our home
found in Kentucky fire
lit by desire
Road Trip 2020, Day Eight
gratitude
Road Trip 2020, Day Five
if only these pics were perfect
as perfectly peaceful as they appear
and no one lost a phone (and all the love attached) to a lake
and no one said they hated each other
and no one lied to their mother
and no one cried.
but life isn’t this lake
this quiet Kentucky fishing lake that we ruined with six screaming kids and one barking dog
this peaceful lake for paddling or praying or both
this swimmable, all-ours, wake-free lake.
Life is this lake, isn’t it?
Perfect and not so perfect.
Road Trip 2020, Day Four
Kentucky cycles:
you can find happiness in
rolling hills, horse farms
Road Trip 2020, Day Three
nothing like my park
and isn’t that so perfect?
vines, dogs, shade, creeks, peace.
nothing like my path
and isn’t that so perfect?
sun, hills, curves, town, bike.
Coronatine, Day Eighty-six
magic pupusas
like play dough for my nieces
home cooked by my son
side of garden leaves,
fresh cut perfect peonies,
beauty from our home
Coronatine, Day Eighty
victory garden:
popping peonies, pea blooms,
pretty potatoes
our first tomato,
reliable zucchini,
even cilantro
let’s toast us with food
as perfect as irises
that we grew ourselves
Coronatine, Day Sixty-six
paranoia wins
my midday motherhood run
(let’s hope she’s healthy)
for now, let us plant.
petunias, lupine, sweet blooms
springing for summer
Coronatine, Day Sixty-four
the sun keeps rising
and he bought a screen for pics
of all our travels
it can’t be the same
but the sun will rise again
and we’ll try again
Coronatine, Day Sixty-two
we’ve risen at dawn
for two months of lonely walks
but look at our view
Coronatine, Day Sixty-one
I went to the grocery store today, and I don’t want to write about the nightmare I had last night where no one was wearing a mask.
Could you imagine, three months ago, having a nightmare about people not wearing masks in Target?
Actually, King Soopers was well-stocked today. Everyone I saw had a mask on. People at 8:30am obeyed the one-way aisle rules, and best of all? I stayed within my budget.
I made a budget for my post-work husband, starting at the beginning of May. $200 a week. It may sound extraordinarily excessive, but we’ve got six mouths to feed, and these are American prices, after all.
But I bought extras today. This bugleweed. A roll of packaging tape. And sushi because fuck Wednesday cooking.
And, my nightmares should end soon.
Because my post-work husband got a job, a non-union, non-seniority-screws-you job, doing exactly what he’s great at and wants to do forever, in the midst of a pandemic.
And.
And you can call it what you want. White privilege. True. Luck. Absolutely. Divine intervention. Maybe.
Or just… fate. The fate that led him through the Air Force to me, that led the boy to our doorstep, that led three beautiful daughters into our home, that led his previous experience to him becoming the best candidate out of all the others being laid off.
Coronatine, day sixty-one. It’s a beautiful image filled with pets, hope, and love.
And I want to hold on to this non-nightmare feeling for as long as I can.
And.
This cat was born to be a model. Good night.
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