KATYDID

 

 A katydid stopped by this morning…landing on the porch next to me.

I decided to name her Katy…after all…what else should her name be?

When she joined me in the silence and as we sat among the trees.

I was glad for this small reminder of all the beauty surrounding me.

And I thought as I greeted this insect I had never met before…

How I will never tire of the surprises life and nature have in store.

I will never tire of sunrises and sunsets…

of a valley or a mountainous terrain

of a morning fog, of clouds, of rainbows

or of the aroma that lingers after a rain.

I will never tire of watching the flowers bloom in Spring,

how the Summer sunshine makes the ocean glow,

how the leaves change colors in the Fall 

or a blanket of Winter snow.

I will never tire of seeing deer, raccoons and turkeys, 

the sunlight peeking through the trees

the birds that whistle and warble and sing all day long…

ladybugs, butterflies or bees.

I will never tire of walking by a river, watching a baby crawl

counting the stars that dot the evening sky…a cascading waterfall.

I will never tire of traveling…visiting people in far off places

hearing the voices of those I love…seeing the smiles on their faces.

I sat on our porch this morning…

smiling at all these things I started thinking of…

All the things that bring me joy

All things I love.

And I stopped to thank that little green insect

as off the porch she slid….

because when it came to reminding me of the beauty of life

This morning…

that’s exactly what Katy did.

FREDDY'S QUILT

 

When you reach a certain age…after turning out the lights

for one reason or another you find you wake up in the middle 0f the night. 

So each night on our couch before we retire…

you can find us placing

A quilt to comfort us in case we want to read when we get up

or for those nights our mind is racing.

Deborah’s parents, Fred and Diane built this cabin

in the mountains among the deer, turkey and bears…

Their essence permeates these walls…

This cabin will always be theirs.

 

But as we make their cabin our home…

adding our furniture, artwork…potting our own flowers

we’re doing our best to keep their dream alive

as we make their cabin ours.

While searching through the cabin…we found this quilt.

It was one in the hospital her father had…

on which Deborah had printed

this quilt belongs to her dad.

This is the quilt that now sits on our couch when we turn out the lights

waiting for whomever wakes up during the night.

There is something very soothing

knowing when we wake up in the middle of the night…

we can find comfort under this quilt…

safe and warm within the walls of the cabin 

Diane and Freddy built.

A FAMILY OF RACCOONS

 

With our move into the country…simplifying is what it’s all about

We look critically at those things we need…and those we can do without.

From furniture and household items to clothes we find at the bottom of a drawer 

So many items we’ve discovered we don’t use or wear them anymore.

So we’ve been piling  and stacking these items on our porch

since in our life we no longer choose them…

to be given away, hopefully, to other families who will use them.

Well, word must have spread on the mountain…

because this morning what did we see

rummaging through these items but a raccoon family.

A mommy and her three babies…easy to spot by their distinctive masks and tails

Testing out our goods…like shoppers at a rummage sale.

Normally they come for food…looking to see if we’ve left them a surprise…

but this morning it was the items on the porch that caught those raccoon eyes.

I greeted them from the window…and when Mom looked up at me…

I told her to take whatever she wanted…that everything was free.

I said you’re welcome to the Dirt Devil…if it would fit into the hollow of your tree…

She smile saying, Thanks, but It’s much too big…and we have no electricity.

I tried to interest her in some pots and pans…She said raccoons don’t cook…

If’ it’s okay with you, she said…I think the children just want to look.

So I eased off the sales pitch…allowing them browse…as the night turned into dawn.

and the next time I looked out…the raccoon family was gone.

I’m not sure if they took anything…because in their life there is nothing that they lack

But by the way she lusted over that Dirt Devil…I imagine this evening…they’ll be back.

LISTENING TO THE BREEZE

 

In the darkness of the morning sitting on our porch nestled in the trees

I can’t help but smile while listening to the breeze. 

There is this kind of mystery inherent in the breeze…

I swear sometimes I can her her giggling as she rustles through the trees.

For she knows I haven’t the slightest idea…where her life begins…

and I can only guess where she is going

because I only know where she has been.

If I could talk the breeze’s language I would say, “Stop a moment please!”

And I wold ask her how it feels to travel over mountains, past rivers…through the trees.

In the darkness of the morning I cannot see what might be floating on her wings

I can only hear the sounds that ride with her…the ones that cause the breeze to sing.

I wonder if she ever wonders about each new morning song.. 

or is she content just to give a lift to all the sounds that ride along.

On today’s breeze I hear a million crickets chirping

and one owl…it sound to me as if she’s weeping.

These are the only sounds that fill the darkness 

while the morning continues sleeping.

It is a beautiful time of day…you have to enjoy it before it’s gone…

before these unique sounds of the night…cede to the singing of the dawn

I know if I wait long enough…the sunlit breeze will bring along

riding on her wings…a variety of songs.

And though I love listening and watching the day awaken… 

for now I am content…to let the morning continue sleeping

While I listen to the final crescendo of the crickets…

and one owl show sounds like she is weeping.

ADIEU

 

The day has finally arrived…

It’s time to say goodbye to the only home the two of us together have ever known

and looking back it seems amazing how fast the time has flown.

 

We made one final walkthrough remembering the life here we’ve created…

thinking of all the wonderful moments in this home we’ve celebrated.

This house is where so many of our seeds of love were planted…intermittently…

where those seeds were nourished through the years and grew into a family.

Our family…where each individual with their particular genes and chromosomes…

contributed to the building of our memories, 

our successes,  

our laughter, 

our tears…

our home.  

In this home so many wonderful moments…

huge achievements and milestones we have seen…

as well as so much wonder in those little moments in between.

Most days were made up of these little moments 

filled with their own wonder, their own flair…

and often in these little moments…we’ve found our comfort there.

For us…these little daily moments as we ride life’s carousel…

are what make a life worth living…are where our joy and happiness dwell.

One thought that dominates the rest…as each memory we cue up….

is how this house…this home we love…is where the five of us grew up.

It helped create the people we are now…the people we’ve come to know

which makes us a little sad today…now that it’s time to let her go.

But one thing we know as we move to a new home …a new habitat

is how change is a part of life…this old house has taught us that.

So it with a smile and a tear…we bid this old house…our home…adieu…

and thank her for 40 years of helping to make our family’s dreams come true.