Atmospheric

November 5, 2019.Reading time less than 1 minute.

Orange sky,wire fence –stay out implied. Silken cloudssurf Autumn hues –seasonal moodiness. (For Nancy Merrill’s A Photo A Week Challenge: atmospheric.)

V.J.’s Weekly Challenge #71: wait

November 4, 2019.Reading time 1 minute.

I’m sitting in the passenger seat of our parked car, waiting while Ric runs in to pick up a few groceries. This is our normal routine. He shops; I wait. Confession: I am not good at waiting. I have this compulsive need to fill each minute of the day with productivity. So I thumb through […]

Close Encounter

November 3, 2019.Reading time 4 minutes.

The year was 1964. I was six, and just barely tall enough to see out the kitchen window. I remember it was dark, so I wasn’t bothered too much with what was on the other side, until I saw the flashing lights. Mom and Grandma were stood there with me – we had dishes duty […]

Shades of Green

November 2, 2019.Reading time less than 1 minute.

All is green, come summer here, the river and its banks, and the rolling fields of corn. For Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge: Green.

V.J.’s Weekly Challenge #70: alien

October 28, 2019.Reading time 2 minutes.

“I’ve never seen anything like this!” I’m at the doctor’s again. It’s a followup visit with the specialist to verify the new treatment is working. It is working…sort of…except for the large, red welts on my face. “Leave it to me,” I respond. “Always presenting teaching material.” “Yes, well, I have no students anymore, so […]

Inspiration Rekindled

October 27, 2019.Reading time 1 minute.

Eight years now, I have been blogging. It has been a process of unfolding. In the beginning, I wrote for reflection, but as life changed, so did my need. I dug deeper and poetry emerged. I remember at one point telling my husband that I wished I could create my own images to pair with […]

Textures

October 26, 2019.Reading time less than 1 minute.

So many textures tempt –tree bark and tree art a fuzzy caterpillar – oh that tickles …and some things, are better admiredfrom a distance, hands off! (For Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge: textures)

Summer Stragglers

October 25, 2019.Reading time less than 1 minute.

Other blooms may fade,succumbing to Autumn’s chill –Snapdragons stand tall. (For Cee’s Flower of the Day.)

Layered

October 23, 2019.Reading time less than 1 minute.

Above, below, in the middleso many layers to small town life The perceived but a reflectionideals mirrored in stillness some layers more transparent –a pie-lovers paradise. For Lens-Artists Weekly Photo challenge: layered.

V.J.’s Weekly Challenge #69: kindle

October 21, 2019.Reading time 1 minute.

My gears are seizing up; creativity sabotaged by self-doubts. The inner critic declares my efforts worthless. My paints sit dormant. I fear stagnation. “I need something to kindle my inspiration,” I tell my artist friend. Together we visit a local artisan’s workshop. A listing of art classes informs us of an upcoming sketching class. We […]

Wings

(Written during my bedbound years with ME/CFS)

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis

May is Myalgic Encephalomyelitis awareness month. Also known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, this disease is characterized by exhaustion after exertion. The exertion can be physical -taking a shower; emotional – worrying or obsessing; or mental- filling out forms. The best source of information about ME/cfs, as we call it, is the Bateman Horne Center. They […]

Sorry

Sorry –so much inadequacybundled into one wordas if five letterscan conveydepths of regret,shock, dismay seems I am the sparkto your lighter fluid –unintentional, I swear still reelingfrom the aftermathof the explosion attempting todeconstruct theformula –precautionary I am sorry –that you are enraged,that you are so obviously disappointedthat you are consumed with resentment –except, it is […]