a rough travel day
and some rough river waters
aren’t too rough for us
the sunset calms us
the river settles for bed
and we can rest now
Silver Anniversary Trip, Day Eighteen
summer
Silver Anniversary Trip, Day Seventeen
we’re the post office:
through wind, rain, sleet, clouds… weather
we weather the storm
just another day
in the life we’ve created
in sickness and health
Silver Anniversary Trip, Day Fourteen
1.8 million:
the years laurel has lived here
giving life to all
enchanted forest:
the only words to describe
Madeira’s true gold
traditional homes
give homage to these laurels
simple thatched roofs
a magical place
waits for you on this island
hidden in the sea
Silver Anniversary Trip, Day Twelve
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
Silver Anniversary Trip, Day Eleven
enchanted lava
creates unique swimming pools
otherworldly
infinity pools
so twenty-first century
simply don’t compare
Silver Anniversary Trip, Day Three
monumental start
to a pretty walking trip
of a London day
Tower Bridge tour
with views of the mighty Thames
where they built this town
an historic bar
rebuilt four centuries back
for beers in cellars
Silver Anniversary Trip, Day Two
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
Silver Anniversary Trip, Day One
with first flight canceled,
a frenzied drive across town
against Swift traffic
we made it in time
to a line wrapped three times round
the doomed terminal
we had just hours
after a year of planning
to catch the right plane
at the airport bar
post-security panic
we toasted our luck
he saw my new ‘do
the grins of relief returned
twenty-five years in
on board, luck joined us
with a whole row to ourselves
on “overbooked” flight
what a start to our
silver anniversary
purple as the sun
Ten to One
ten gallons of paint
in two shades of first-place blue
nine sets of hands working
on their shared day off
eight sets of curtains
washed and re-hung
seven stairs on each level
to paint between the cracks
six day deadline to
start a vacation, a new life
five day miracles happen
with many hands making light work
four levels to scrub grime
from walls, baseboards, and floors
three gallons of cleaner
to rub our hands raw
two levels of pet-pee-stained carpet
replaced at an affordable rate
one hell of a victory
for the life we work so hard to achieve
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