Cat Defined

Photo by Pacto Visual on Unsplash

 

Cat
noun
1 a: carnivorous mammals that never were timorous;
    oppressing the unfortunate mice (birds, snakes, etc.) they find;
    but not picky - carefully packed cans are just as nice.
   b: companions, oh surely;
    yet just as often aloof and surly.
2 a: a family, Felidae, wild and free;
    from the lynx and the sphinx
    to the lion and the little ones
    that lie on my knee;
    cousins that purr while on other horizons,
    mighty roars ring out over the miles.
3 a: perfection. 

Shared with dVerse.

I like writing poems in the form of dictionary entries. This one isn't my best, but it still amuses me.

 

Empower

Photo by Josipa Juras on Unsplash

Within the castle’s rough hewn towers,
we fled to escape the ogre’s glower,
raising the drawbridge against its power;
yet it stands there ready to devour.
So through the murky twilight we scour
the lanes and hills and fields of flowers.
Growing more fearful by the hour,
searching for one who will not cower.
But who can rescue us from this bower?
Just when things are most dark and dour,
bright hope suddenly upon us showers.
In the distance, on a horse white like flour,
riding tantivy, the knight is racing to empower;
to free us; to make the night sweet, instead of sour.
The ogre bellows, but the knight allows her
blade to fall upon the loathsome prowler
and thus she swiftly overpowers
the fiend and we are free! And now her
deeds are widely known throughout our
castle’s rough hewn towers.

 

Written for dVerse.

 

Spa Day

Photo by Camille Brodard on Unsplash

 

How doth the enormous grizzly bear
Improve his shining claws,
And files them smartly with great care
To pamper those mighty paws!

How cheerfully he seems to grin,
While he neatly combs his fur,
And welcomes the hairdresser in,
Along with the masseur.

How relaxing is the grizzly’s spa!
Where he maintains his intimidating style
While the hairdresser shrinks in awe
And the masseur quivers all the while.  

 

This is a parody of Lewis Carroll's The Crocodile, which is a parody of Isaac Watts' How Doth the Little Busy Bee.

Shared with dVerse Open Link Night #291.

Something Ephemeral

Photo by Marina Shatskih on Unsplash

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Something ephemeral bides
long by the baby’s side
for today he’s small,
tomorrow, grown so tall
and still in each look and mien
he’s all the sizes in-between.
Today rings with babbling coos
tomorrow, with words of every hue
and in the echo of each dulcet sound
baby giggles still abound.
Today he holds my finger
tomorrow, he will not linger.
While for now I am his world,
tomorrow, with sails unfurled,
he’ll chase dreams across the sky.
While I watch with wondering sigh;
see the man inside the growing child,
and in the man, all his yesteryears compiled.

 

Always Greener

Photo by Johannes Plenio on Unsplash

 

On the other side of me and now
verdant pastures sweep up to the sky
greener than the new spring boughs.
I count each grass blade with a sigh,
for the hills over yonder I am sure,
are lusher than these I sojourn by;
and they gleam emerald with allure.
If I had choice, to them I’d swiftly fly!
And yet something whispers, Stay
the grasses there have much to belie
and the meadows near are not so gray.
And when I cast my eyes about I see
green aplenty on all sides of me. 

Book Nook

Photo by Gaelle Marcel on Unsplash

 

 

Here in my nook
me, myself, and I
and the glorious book.
For the next golden while
let me say goodbye
to the laundry pile
dinner pans and dishes
without anyone asking why.
These are my only wishes,
so go away; don’t bother me.

 

Written for dVerse.

Ready

 

Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash

                                                                This just in from tomorrow
                                                                where the future is arriving
                                                                is it full of joy or sorrow?
                                                                if you want to know more
                                                                then here’s the scoop
                                                                tomorrow sets sail from the shore
                                                                that you’ve heard is called today
                                                                so make the story unfold
                                                                with each step and sway
                                                                live to make them matter
                                                                the menial moments unsung
                                                                or those of clamor and clatter
                                                                for every current event
                                                                heralds the coming dawn
                                                                ready for whatever is sent.

 

blessings

Photo by Vita Marija Murenaite on Unsplash

                                                                    rushing summer
                                                                    bubbles, laughs, and splashes
                                                                    blue blessings

 

Happy International Haiku Day!

Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Nap

Photo by Bastien Jaillot on Unsplash

 With apologies to Dylan Thomas. His poem is much better and much more serious than mine.

Do not go gentle into that good nap,
Babies should burn and rave at onset of sleep;
Rage, rage against the swaddled wrap

Though wise parents know the cradle trap,
Like a conspiracy leads to slumber deep,
Babies still do not go gentle into that good nap.

For when sleepy eyes close, a cry:  Recap!
Their frail frames squall and flail and leap.
Raging, raging against the swaddled wrap.

Wild babies caught in soporific blanket scraps,
Learn too soon to wail and weep;
They do not go gentle into that good nap.

Drowsy babes, near sleep, still court mishap
With groans, laments, and fretful peeps,
Rage, rage against the swaddled wrap.

And you, my babe, upon my lap,
An impassioned, wakeful heap.
You do not go gentle into that good nap.
Raging, raging against the swaddled wrap.

Shared with dVerse.

 

Symbols of the Dogwood

Photo by SilverGardenia

Out in the garden at Eastertide
flowers point to Christ and how He died
so look upon the dogwood tree
with its living symbols three,
for within the flower’s center lays
the thorny crown of former days.
and whose petals bloom crosswise
raising the cross to the azure skies.
And each petal bears a reddened pleat
where our Savior’s loving hands and feet
were pierced by unrelenting nails
yet over all these He eternally prevails!
So every blossom tells the story
of Christ who died and rose in glory
thus when the dogwood tree is nigh
it points us to our Lord on High.

 

Dogwoods are some of my favorite flowers! The Legend of the Dogwood says that the dogwood was the tree used to make the cross that Christ was crucified on and that afterwards, Christ gave it flowers that resembled the cross, the crown of thorns, and the marks in his hands and feet. Dogwoods are native to the Eastern United States and don't grow in the Holy Land, so it's very easy to disprove this legend. But the symbolism is still beautiful.

The Fairy's Shopping List

Photo by Alfred Schrock on Unsplash

Spider silk and milkweed fluff -
Is twice as much of me enough,
to weave a fairy gown?

Next I’ll need an acorn cap,
a bit of grass to make a strap;
won’t it be a handsome hat?

Around my neck some lilac blooms
rich with sweet ethereal perfume.
Are there grander gems than these?

Then when all my shopping’s done
I’ll dance beneath the morning sun
The finest fairy you ever saw!

Covid-19’s ABC’s

Photo by Ibrahim Boran on Unsplash

A is for Asymptomatic
    If you don’t know you have it, it’s quite problematic.

B is for Banana Bread
    Everyone’s baking it, they said.

C is for Contact-tracing
    Hold tight, we’re going virus chasing.

D is for Doctors Save Lives
    It could be your husbands or your wives.

E is for Emergency
    Treat it with urgency.

F is for Facemask
    Keep it on, that’s your task.
    
G is for Grocery Delivery
    A necessity; not a frippery.

H is for Home
    Stay put, don’t go roam.

I is for Isolation
    When you’re sick, hello frustration.
    
J is for Johnson & Johnson
    A one-dose option.

K is for Keep Sanitizing
    Stop the virus from arising.

L is for Loss of Taste and Smell
    Is it tasty or stinky? You can’t tell.

M is for Moderna
    Number two in the fight against corona.

N is for Nose Swab
    Yes it hurts, but it does its job.

O is for Online Learning
    But, in-person classes are the yearning.

P is for Pfizer
    Take it and be a little wiser.

Q is for Quarantine
    The post-travel two-week routine.

R is for Restaurants Closed
    Stay away so you don’t get exposed.

S is for Social Distancing
    Six feet apart and please don’t sing.

T is for Toilet Paper Rush
    Make sure you’re all stocked up and don’t forget to flush.
    
U is for Unemployment
    A dreadful disappointment.

V is for Virus Variants
    Villainous and nefarious.

W is for Wuhan
    Where the virus dawned.

X is for X Out Travel
    And watch our lives unravel.

Y is for Year Long Disaster
    When the virus was our master.

Z is for Zoom
    The universal electronic room.

 

 

Shared with dVerse. 

 

Flip

Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash

 

Question
Simple, complex
Wondering, searching, pondering
Riddle, conundrum, insight, acumen
Solving, knowing, sharing,
Complex, simple
Answer

 

How to Open a Door

Photo by Nick Page on Unsplash

 

It’s really such a chore.
First: Put on your shoes.
No wait, back up and choose
socks thick and woolly
or cotton thin. Choose fully
aware that at the end is the door.
So perhaps your long fuzzy socks,
or those colored like phlox,
or socks with bold polka-dots?
Carefully arrange your thoughts
ere your feet hit the floor.
Second: Examine the shoes,
for again you must choose,
before you can grasp the handle.
Glass slippers or boots or sandals,
it all depends on what you intend
to find on the other side of the door.

Burnt Cross Buns

 

Sitting in the oven are the hot cross buns
Where the heat is rising and it’s hotter than the sun
Watch them blacken, watch the growing smoke
Alas, the fire alarm is blaring and it’s no joke

Call your daughters and your sons
Come and weep for the hot cross buns
After such a tragedy, what can you do?
Start all over, make another batch or two.

 

 

Sadly, this poem is based on a true story. And if you're looking at the picture thinking, "Those don't look too bad," those are the hot cross buns that survived. Pictures weren't taken until after the charred ones had been donated to the trash can. Luckily, the redemption batch was perfect.