Here they come!
Closer!
Leaving rivers of Santa’s white whiskers behind
Hearts Bloom
Snowbirds embrace us all
As they fly
Hope glinting through
Leaving
Rivers of Santa’s white whiskers behind
A gift
in the summer sky.
Ty and William
Ty
You are the smaller shadow walking beside me,
Your tags creating tinkling music to my ears,
More resounding than Beethoven
Bright as Clair de Lune
Your wagging tail, orchestrating a maestro’s furry baton
As we walk
You leading the music between us
Two companions. Two friends. Together.
Village Upside Down
Greetings from a Village Upside Down!
Once again the Deep Freeze team has pulled off a successful winter family festival on Alberta Avenue. Word is that roughly 40,000 people were in attendance. A record!
This year, the wily, creative Deep Freeze family festival team came up with the theme “Village Upside Down.” Here are my thoughts on that.
Village Upside Down
Come inside this house so rare
enter by the attic stair
Trees stand
roots up in the air
Hatred becomes love
everywhere
In our village upside down.
Our mayor
when he is able
holds court atop the council table.
Tails wagging down and up
Oceans fit into a cup
In our village upside down.
The town clock strikes midnight at twelve noon
sounding so eerily out of tune
while children play ‘neath a silvery moon
In our village upside down.
Today I was surprised and excited when I noticed a billboard with a painting by local artist, Maria Pace-Wynters, beside the Stadium LRT Station on Stadium Road.
It is entitled “I Can See My Dreams”
Congratulations Maria! What a treat to be driving down Stadium Road and see your art!
Of course, I wrote a poem about it…
Fair face
Suspended now
Youth exaggerate
Lushly growing things, seen through a gossamer wing
As from your thoughts arise, birds, flowers. Butterflies
This child, this muse, this dream
A wallpaper of life
Early Sunday morning, a car was left abandoned in front of our house. By Sunday afternoon, someone had smashed in the car windows leaving a scene of violence behind them. Shattered glass covered the lawn and pavement surrounding the car. I still feel myself tense up when I think about it. Smash!Down are the words that I use to describe what I saw.
There’s a curve in the words
Smash!Down
Glass shards hit the ground
in a see-through sound
Smash!Down
No light savior behavior
Just a grin that turns in
Music born from within
You repeat to the beat
Smash!Down
Smash!Down
Bicycles in Amsterdam
Greetings everyone! We have just returned from Amsterdam.
Bicycles are rampant there as the city moves in a seamless ballet of pedestrians, cars and bikes. There is the occasional horn honk or brake screeching, after which the city’s inhabitants glance at each other muttering the word “tourist” under their breath.
On the Avenue, you might see a couple of bikes chained to a rack, but in Amsterdam there are crowds of bicycles huddled together. They have designated bike lanes, separated from the traffic, making it safer. There are also thousands of kilometers of bike trails running next to the highway in the Netherlands. Bicycle heaven!
One is a lonely number- for a bicycle!
Amsterdam inspired me to get out my bike and write this poem.
Night rain
water sprays behind my tires
plopping fluid drops
merging together
smelling clean and cool
Serene
lone cyclist with a newly-made sun
lighting my path
this Alberta Avenue morning
Bard of the Avenue 