Look - No Tears

I will always hear the train,
the tracks abandoned long ago.
And the day you said goodbye
was the day I let you go.

Off you went into the mist,
and the leaves began to change.
It's as if the world sped up
with desire to rearrange.

Celebrate the Small Things - Bloghop Friday!

Today I am celebrating the final step to owning my home - the one I inherited from my parents. What a challenge to make all the technical stuff line up with their wishes for me. The closing is next!! No, not necessarily a small thing, but it is the one thing I am so happy about because it is coming to the end. Thanks Mom & Dad!!!

This post is part of VikLit's blog hop, Celebrate the Small Things. To be part of this blog hop, all you have to do is follow the link and put your name on the Mr.Linky list, and then be sure to post every Friday about something you're grateful  for that week.  It can be about writing or family or school or general life.  This is the funnest and easiest blog hop ever! 

Celebrate the Small Things - Bloghop Fridays

Your basic - Blue Hollow Nightmare

You enticed me blue hollow.
You bade me to follow.
I followed
and fumbled,
and now left to wallow.

In the trees I heard a cry.
Not a wail of a sigh.
Not a moan
or a groan,
but a voice pleading, why?

Whispers and chains do rattle.
Thoughts in my head do battle.
I will flee
far from thee,
let that spider eat cattle.

Tada.

A Halting Tale

Fred and his little brother Roger were eager for the joys of Halloween. Today would be their third and final trip into the woods to secure shrooms, nuts, and special leaves. Then off to trade them at the gift shop for the oh-so-coveted Halloween costumes. Indeed a glorious day awaited. (uh-huh)

Roger's scream echoed through the woods, "Fred, oh my, Fred, come see this shroom!!" Fred rolled his eyes as he often did, at his little brother's exaggerated excitement.

Fred jumped back horrified, staring at a THREE foot shroom. Goodness! Roger had a good reason to scream this time. "That's the ugliest shroom I've ever seen, " said Fred.

"Who's an ugly shroom?" replied the shroom. This time Fred screamed. Roger who turned to run tripped on a large tree root, halting his departure. He lay upon the ground arms flailing wildly unable to speak.

"Well, you are! " yelled Fred. Sure he was a bit frightened, but what the heck it was after all just a member of the mushroom family.

Zip-bang-zowie! and the shroom became a lovely little girl. Fred fell back and felt a tinge of overwhelming love for this 'beautimous' creature. Roger who still lay on the ground thought, uh-oh, this is going to be complicated.

"There are so many more treasures to be found in these woods, my woods," said the lovely little shroom, er, girl. "Follow me through that yonder golden light, and I'll show you." Her eyes did that 'batting' thing and Fred was fast upon her heels.

Roger lay on the pile of leaves watching as the girl shroom and brother Fred disappeared into the golden light, "I ain't going; you can't make me!" But the older boy and lovely shroom had already gone beyond Roger's hearing.

The morning of Halloween came, and still Fred was missing. Many searched the woods daily, to no avail. It was then that Roger realized he had a lot of coins from their "trade-ins," and could upgrade(!) his choice of costume. For the first time he hoped they'd find Fred AFTER Halloween. (uh-huh)

The shop was jammed-packed. Many had waited for the last shipment of new stuff before making a final choice. Roger walked up to a wall that displayed a sign: "Magic Manipulating Potions"... "limit three items for all the stuff you collected in the woods... or equivalent coinage, Roger." (Did the wall know his name? No, the manager is also named 'Roger'. Nice try.)

But Roger, our Roger, thought: This might actually be better than a costume. Just think, a magic potion to make the candy store clerk give you all the candy?!! A magic potion to make the bank teller give you all her one dollar bills! And third, a magic potion to make Roger a hero, finding his brother and bringing him home! A huge parade would of course be given in his honor! All the town's kids would give him their Halloween treats... Roger's imagination was endless. "YES SIR, I want to buy the three magic potions!!!"

"Are you sure?" asked the store manager, Roger. He saw the devilish little smile on the small boy's face. Oh yes, he was sure, alright.

Roger was so happy and went home to make a plan. How was it that he heard Fred calling his name? The voice got louder and louder! What in the world, wasn't Fred lost? Had he been found already? No parade for Roger - what?? It was then that Roger awoke from a very sound dream... a halting dream. No magic potions were on his small desk. He'd merely been asleep. Now it was morning and Fred stood over him, calling him awake.

"Come on little brother. Today I need your help on my science project. I can't let that silly Nelly win the prize. She has won for the last two years. So get up. Help me decide what to do for my science project this year."

Roger's deflation of excitement had taxed him so quickly upon awakening. Here was Fred alive, and he Roger hating it. What? Science project? Oh yes... yes... science project. "I know just the thing Fred! Let's go to the woods and collect shrooms. You can analyze them and tell all about their life cycles and such stuff, right?!" Across Roger's face came a devilish smile. Yes... the science project... so there might still be a chance to make a large Halloween haul after all. And still be the brother-finding hero... YES! he ROGER would see it all come true!!! "Muhu-ha-ha-ha!"

"What did you say Roger?" asked Fred.

Home

Charlotte, North Carolina - home. There's no credit for the image but wow what a shot!

I love to paint and wouldn't this be a trick and a treat? Wouldn't be the first time I've tackled that skyline. What I love the most is the sky and rising sun. Incredible how the light plays off the dark, and the deep blues compliment the yellows and golds. Of course I see all the purple and lavender and the complimentary orange. Could be a project yet; I'll let you know.

Some days are just...

Some days are just lazy. They show up, you have plans but somehow you push them away. The light pulls you outside, like it did me. The breeze begins talking and whatever it's saying you have to listen really hard, but you're feeling lazy, like I did today. It started out as simple as looking out the window. Watching the trees sway back and forth, back and forth... what I wouldn't give to be outside. While the days are still warm you want to grab every bit of cool gentleness that you can. So you go, like I did. All of that stuff, those plans that had to be can wait. Some days are just lazy.

Hickory, dickory, dock

You may think this post is about the old English poem of the same name. Nope, instead it is about the aggravating hickory nuts that are falling, falling, from a tree in my yard. Here we go. My apologies to the English.

Hickory, dickory, nut,
I nearly bust my butt.
Your constant falling
is not enthralling,
I feel I'm in a rut.

Hickory, dickory, do,
please stay out of my shoe.
I try to sweep,
but in my sleep,
accumulation is anew.

Hickory, dickory, crop,
oh won't you ever stop?
The days are long,
I hate this song;
maybe I'll go shop!

Ah, the treasures of Autumn. If only they were the edible kind. (Sigh)

Did you know there's a book called, Hickory Nuts in the Driveway, by Dari Bradley? Yipes!

Life in Flight

If I were a butterfly what would I see? These delicate creatures travel thousands of miles every year. Changing weather patterns have certainly made their lives harder; harder to reach and return to regular destinations. Yet they continue - their dogged determination inspires humans to assign them a place of inspiration.

By the end of September my Butterfly bushes seemed to be dying back - finished for the year. By the second week of October they were fully loaded with blooms for the fifth time. I thought that strange until a new, possibly last round of butterflies, began to arrive. Maybe these few are staying this time and their life cycle is over. A large blue one seemed to sit down on my garden wall and go to sleep. It took me a couple of hours to realize the creature's life in flight was over.

I wait for early spring to cut back the bushes. To do so now could take a tiny morsel, possibly needed by a late commuter.

Be Still

I walk through a maze of lies ~
and still I see beauty.
The world would have me give up ~
and still I feel strength.
Thoughts would rush to hurt ~
and still I let them go.
Another day dawns with wonder ~
and still I am thankful.

Five Dogwoods

Above my driveway stand five dogwoods fully loaded with red berries, and leaves that have turned in only three days. Imagine? Nature working overtime?

The chem trails stopped for a few days. At my house it was as if the Creator had opened the windows of heaven and it rained for three days. Blue, blue skies appeared, and such beauty I hadn't seen in months. That's why I think it was from the Creator. So I went out and enjoyed Friday in my yard. But I know those trails will begin to appear again soon. All one has to do is watch the sky, and the slow floating of long white stripes... they'll be on the ground in a matter of hours. Sometimes they blend together and look like nice large clouds. A checker board across the sky most days.

Could we call this a weapon of mass destruction? The chemicals contained in the chem trails destroy crops, trees, animals, insects, and of course people. It's a clever wickedness that devised this.

I had a great time. The breeze was perfect. The sunlight was perfect. The temperature was perfect. The five dogwoods were perfect. And early in the morning the most beautiful, bright moon was crossing the sky just ahead of sunrise.