A friend from my poetry circle honoured me with a birdhouse painted with Ukrainian colours. John has since passed away, and this summer we were finally able to give the birdhouse a home in our garden.
Happy to say, John, that the chickadees have settled in and I am joyfully reminded of you everyday.
What’s more exciting than a ring full of peanuts and a cast of blue jays?
Photography mine
(Photo collage mine)
Weighed down by complications –
you see, the amount of baggage
I carry surpasses my storage
capacity; and despite attempts
to simplify, paranoia tends to
my bathroom routines, and
no amount of persuasion can
appease her suspicions; and
the majority of my contents
have been accumulated by
my father’s business, and not
really mine to unload, although
I try, his tyranny still haunts me;
and well, anything new that I
start has to be protected from
the familial bouts of insanity;
and that is why I just want to
pack my bags and get out of
here, and be a mother to my
children; but it’s complicated.
(Art my own)
What light is this
illuminates the midnight clouds?
I have risen from my bed
lured by this oddness
Suspecting menace,
but finding only wonder
How the walnut radiates
her presence conspiratorial
Pine tree and brush
surely giggle at my confusion
The yard, a marvel in white
glows in the unexpected brightness
I sense, but cannot surmise
a message in this nocturnal glow
Feel only the inadequacy of my awe
and the inferiority of humble words.
(Photo captured at 1:30 am, three nights ago)
One Woman's Quest 