ten thousand stone steps
slippery at dawn, at noon
as mist never stops
ten thousand reasons
to be afraid of this hike,
yet we keep trekking
ten thousand peak views
all in different shades of light
just like our marriage
ten thousand questions
when we married at twenty
look how far we’ve come
enchanted lava
creates unique swimming pools
otherworldly
infinity pools
so twenty-first century
simply don’t compare
jet-lagged beginning
for a slow and easy day
goals: tea, nature, food
the Thames is perfect,
Chelsea is as sweet as pie,
London has orchids
with perfect planning
(cutting onions with bad knives)
we’ll eat cheap; sweet prize
our road trip return:
too many blossoms to count
(spring inside the house)
even outside blooms
just planted last September
have welcomed us home
Colorado roads:
beautiful mountain vistas
scarred by wildfires
javelina hike
to a cactus-filled Thumb Butte
to start the morning
a Whiskey Row lunch
Watson Lake under blue skies
for the afternoon
my daughter’s new friends
soon to be her new roommates:
a perfect evening
Monument Valley:
the perfect sunrise rest stop
to light our faces
snow at Grand Canyon:
surprise bucket list side trip
to catch her snowfall
all three together:
it feels like a bucket list
to let them g(r)o(w)
a new Corona
three years after quarantine
back to wilderness
girls’ trip for spring break
to collect our Subaru
and meet our sister
miracle arches
connect the past and future
with hope for this life
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