walk

October 17, 2012

October 16, 2012

my day ended much the same way it began

walking my dog beneath a dark, yet starlit sky

I woke too soon this morning

4-something instead of 5-ish

I tried to go back to sleep

by 4:45am I’d given up 

and murmured to my husband, “My brain’s awake.”

as I rolled out of bed

he wryly replied, “I don’t think it ever shuts down.”

perhaps not

there are those crazy dreams sometimes

the ones I remember in a vague, bizarre way

the day itself was a good one

drove my boys to school

and I went in with ‘em

spent the morning there

sittin’ in a 5th grade classroom

mounting Art Club art on colored paper

writing out title cards for each piece

then usin’ my three step stool

to hang this mini art show in the hall

in time for Grandparent’s Day on Thursday

home around 11 to walk Blue again

made a phone call, texted with a friend

ate some soup for lunch

napped

a luxury

set my phone alarm so I’d be up in time

to walk the dog again before school let out

picked up my children

fed my parent’s cats

home again

early supper

not a fancy one

make up soccer game at 5:30

for the one we didn’t play in the rain

the sunset was spectacular

my son’s team won the game too

home for the night this time

Blue and I went ‘round the block again

evening spent in the kitchen

dishes, bills, papers

then that last starlit walk

last one ‘til early mornin’ anyway

bedtime

everyone else is tucked in

my turn…now

‘night

Zzzzzzzzzzzz

October 16, 2012

October 15, 2012

Monday check list

Woke up 5-ish.
Dog walked.
Saw my husband off to work.
Garbage and recycling placed on curb.
Children delivered safely to school.
Quick parking lot visit with a friend.
Home again.
Still in my pajamas.
9-ish now.
Time to walk the dog.
It must be Monday morning.

October 15, 2012

August 26, 2012

the weather report

it’s raining today
oh, how we need it
the dirt is cracked
the grass is brown
scorched earth
and withering crops
all around

it’s raining today
oh, how we need it
souls parched
from a long journey
through the desert
without respite
or the nourishing balm
of rain

it’s raining today
oh, how we need it
for even the deepest roots
thirst in times of drought
questioning
withdrawing
lashing out
forgetting
that tangled together
they are tougher
to break apart
by even the mightiest
of storm
realizing it’s better
if they hold tight
to one another
through this long desert walk
it’s raining today
oh, how we need it

August 26, 2012

July 21, 2012 Image

Dear Queen Anne,
I love your lace.
I always have.
Since childhood.
When I’d tuck a stem behind my ear and the delicate blooms would tickle my face.
I picked a dozen and wove the long stems into a crown, oblivious to the minute white petals in my hair long after the crown was gone.
I chose the prettiest blooms and presented them to my grandma in a great big bunch.
Flowers, flowers everywhere in her multilayered gardens, but the only one I was allowed to pick was your lace, Queen Anne.

Time passes.
That young girl, once so carefree, grew into a woman with a family of her own.
But I’m still me.
In the light of early morning, walking my sweet pup on a new path, I spied a familiar flower.
For I never could call it a weed, with a name as lovely as, “Queen Anne’s Lace.”
Hello my friend.
Thank you for waking up my memories, of those childhood days long gone.
My grandma is gone now too.
Smiling down from heaven as I snapped off a single bloom and kept on walking.
Heading home.
Puppy slowing down, pulling less, heeling more.
I know full well it’s against the rules to pick flowers in a public park, as they are there for everyone to enjoy.
I rationalized no one would miss one weed…
Even though in my heart I didn’t think it so.
Thank you for the beautiful, pure white, intricate blooms of your lace, Queen Anne.
I’ll be walking that way again and a flower may or may not follow me home again…
(Depending a bit on who is reading.)
Love,
Janean

July 21, 2012

February 18, 2012 Image

and in the brief moment
that I stood at the window
gazing at the sunrise
that same pup found a sock
under the la-z-boy recliner
he thought it’d be a nice snack
I disagreed
so out we went
at 6:50a.m.
for a walk around the block
me in my pajamas
mismatched ones at that
and polka dot rain boots
because like a firefighter
boots are easier to slip into
than tennis shoes that tie
especially in the dark
of technically morning time
when puppy less people
are sleeping
I’m caring less what others think
and doing what suits me
I guess I have the puppy to thank
for my growing nonchalance
as well as the moonlit, starlit, sunrise walks
that we’re going on
together

January 26, 2012

Thursday afternoon

I have a big sweet puppy dog as a foot warmer.
We just came in from a thirty minute walk on a gray, rain spittin’ day.
There is another hour before it’s time to pick up the children from school.
I may rest my eyes for just a bit…
Or write, while the puppy is still, and my house is too…
Quiet, except for the ticking if the clock and tapping of the keys.
I am thankful for warm toes and this great big baby canine, napping at my feet.