Living On aprpad 9

Remembering John's Garden

~ Dear Heart ~

two years past your death

I’m like a shattered vase

still finding where the

scattered pieces fit

JoMae

~ Living On ~

some visit head stones

some sleep with a lover’s

soft garments left behind

my comfort lies between

the covers of my blog

there I curl up blanketed

with warm words revisiting

verbal snapshots of our life

and all it means, how true

love’s strength sustains

Beyond The Dying

JoMae

4/9/19 

#aprpad 9 - Two for Tuesday prompt: 

 Write a love poem and/or an anti love one.

Winter Envy #aprpad 7

Dreaming of Spring

~ WINTER ENVY~

It’s been a long cold winter

people like me have largely

sheltered in place, staying put

rather than chance slipping on ice

by February I was jealous

of folks living down in Florida

until I thought of how I’d covet 

the rhythm of the seasons were I to move

JoMae

4/7/19

Today’s #aprpad prompt: Write a jealous poem.

Roses in November Snow

After Winter

~ AFTER WINTER ~

After the winter was over

and days became longer

the sun beamed warmer

that dark cocoon of waiting

for more light began to soften

then break open to the magic 

of springtime with its signs of

new life and spirit of hope

as we shed our heavy coats

our hearts became lighter

our worlds a bit brighter

our steps a tad faster

anticipating

~ SPRING ~

JoMae

4/6/19

Today's #aprpad prompt: Start with After the (blank)...

Final Photograph #aprpad 5

#aprpad 5 Prompt: Write of something stolen

John's 80th
Easter Sunday 2015

~ Final Photograph ~

I didn’t take a photograph

(that may have offended some)

but I have that  picture  so sharply

graven on my mind I do not need one

You are imprinted in my heart

along with memories of your touch

but that coffin image means so much

as you lay freshly cleaned - and waiting 

I have your ashes atop Pop’s book case 

(and a few inside my pocket - a small sachet)

but the photo of you resting there, sleeves rolled

back ready for refinement for your next assignment 

…

I have boxes full of prints and photos

I’m surrounded by the artifacts you made

All remind me daily of your absent presence 

Yet one vivid image provides loves closure for

My Fond Farewell

JoMae

3/30/19

4/5/35

John’s birthday today (and I have the yellowed telegram to prove it) So here is another unpolished piece to commemorate the day.  Enjoy.

Their Dad #aprpad 4

John's Tree

~ Their Dad ~

Not a famous painter, but he loved

to capture action in a hasty sketch to

catch the baby dumping his spaghetti

save a vacation moment or draw a silly

birthday card

He’d sketch next year’s garden

lay out  a new kitchen cabinet

explain old dreams on napkins

design a lovely Christmas tree

or simply think in illustrations

on the back of an envelope

Scraps of paper now a treasured

Legacy of Love

JoMae

4/4//19

#aprpad 4 Today’s prompt, pick a painter, make him or her the title of your poem, and then, write your poem.

Animal Poem #aprpad 3

Today's poem-a-day prompt: Write and animal poem ~

Cookie Artist: Jean Spoelhof

~ Animal Poem ~

I’m hard pressed to come up with an animal poem

no pets but the bunnies and squirrels in the yard

lost kittens - who scamper to play in the garden

while robins hop hoping for worms in the lawn

but springtime is here and artists are busy

with cookies so dear, too lovely to nibble

chickens and lambs - all over the plate

bunnies galore might pop in the door

beautiful bunnies that I most adore

Prized art work by Jean the

Gingerbread Lady who’s

exquisite sweets iced

in delicate designs

are treasured

creations

one of a

kind

JoMae

4/3/19
#aprpad 3 - A small tribute to my favorite cookie artist ~

Prompt: write an animal poem - 

Cookie Artist: Jean Speolhof

Silence

A Blue Cocoon

~ Silence ~

The worst case scenario had happened: 

her world seems deaf, his voice now mute

the silent void a thick foam block encasing

a cold suffocating absence -- his presence

No whistling drifting from his workshop now

gone was the sound of footsteps in the door

garden tools dropped to the floor and more

a death she first deemed unable to endure

until one day, out of the silence rose a thought

sparked by a comment she had heard or read

her nature was to savor it to further ponder

she made a note and then another line until

her old familiar joy of writing took a hold. Tiny

bursts of words at first - her heart became ajar

lighting frail new blossoms rooted in old soil 

nurtured by the gift of quiet, time and place

~ Silence ~

The best case scenario had happened

for in her loss she found her voice

harsh gray silence softened to a

blue cocoon filled with words

JoMae

4/2/19

An April Poem-A-Day challenge #aprpad
The day's prompt: Write a worst case and/or best case poem

Winter Mornings #aprpad 1

April Snow

Winter Mornings

Coffee in my most comfortable chair

swimming in the wake up brew

treading an ocean of words

reading, thinking, writing 

until I look up and see

it’s mid afternoon

JoMae

4/1/19

Another April. Another Poem A Day Challenge. 

Today’s challenge: Write a morning poem

Challenge Ending #aprpad 30

Spring Bouquet 2017

April Challenge

The end has come, what shall be done?

April is over, her challenge is finished

I shall miss her but not be forlorn 

- at least not for long

For May is arriving with colorful warmth

lilacs and tuliips, soft gentle breeze

new beginnings and endings

to challenge our days 

 - and bring joy

JoMae

4/30/18

#aprpad 

30. Prompt, write a poem in which something is coming to an end

A Gift of Aging #aprpad 29

A Gift of Aging

I love to catch glimpse of my dear grandmother

peekiing from the smile of our great granddaughter

playing in the kitchen 

A vantage point one cannot achieve except by

Aging

JoMae

4/29/20

#aprpad

Prompt: Write a response poem

My response to my day 2 portrait poem: At 80
      Photo by JessicaKate Miles

Grief's Wave #aprpad 28

Chef's Birthday Treat

Grief’s Wave

In grief’s drowning void

dive deep into loved hobbies

to soothe the yearning

JoMae

4/28/18

#aprpad

Prompt:  take the phrase “(blank) Wave,” replace the blank with a word or phrase, make the new phrase the title of your poem,

My Stuff

John's Carving: Articulated Golfer

My Stuff

I have a fond relationship with stuff

every picture on the wall, each

piece of furniture, a story

Any earring, gift or not, is more than just an

earring, it’s a hug, a memory, a tale to tell

My dear stuff is an element of who I am.

One day I will have to downsize, part with much

and figure out a way to carry things by heart

or be torn up again with loss. It’s only stuff?

Each choice, each gift has formed me. The whole

embracing with an almost unnoticed hug.
Stuff, the warm familiar sea I swim in.

JoMae
4/26/18
#aprpad

John liked to whittle, design toys, games etc.  This is one he made in high school.  You pull the arm back and it hits a ball.  Notice the extra club laying along side.

Prompt: write a relationship poem.

Succulent Tangelos #aprpad 25

Succulent

I love to peel a

little juicy tangelo

for a tasty snack

JoMae

4/25/18

#aprpad

Prompt: pick an intriguing and/or seldom-used word, make it the title of your poem

Small Steps #aprpad 24

Small Steps

Spring air and a walk around the block

put a spring into my step; move me

forward on my journey to discover

who I am to be, now on my own

Small steps, slow steps, clear my foggy head steps

Small steps, slow steps bring me back to me

Warm sun and the promise of more

melt the cobwebs of the winter

invite this sedentary soul to

step out doors and breath

Small steps, slow steps, clear my foggy head steps

Small steps, slow steps bring me back to me

Catching up with friends next door

walking to the avenue for lunch

laughing over nothing in the

rain, make me whole again

Small steps, slow steps, clear my foggy head steps

Small steps, slow steps bring me back to me

JoMae

4/24/18

#aprpad

Prompt: Write a roundelay. (a short, simple song or poem with a refrain) 

Action Inaction #aprpad 23

Action / Inaction

One day of long awaited sun, just one

seventy glorious degrees.

tomorrow will be cooler

the yard calls out for raking

for working up a sweat

my book calls out for reading

while soaking in the warmth

my bones ache for the salve

of penetrating sun to soothe

away the winter, rejuvenate the joints

And so in-action wins the day!

indulgence all the way. I’ll sit here 

till that warm sun goes down

for tomorrow will be cooler!

JoMae

4/23/18

#aprpad

Weeping Willow #aprpad 22

~Weeping Willow~

My golden wheat willow is weeping today

My soulmate, my love has been taken away

New widow, forlorn, softly weeps out her sorrow

While wind furied willow whips out grief's true measure

JoMae

4/22/18
#aprpad

Danger! #aprpad 21

~Danger!~

The great danger of

procrastinating: that the

task will not be done

JoMae

4/21/18

#aprpad

Summer in the ’70s #aprpad 20

~Summer in the ’70s~

Camper and tents packed

Bike rack filled, we were off to

Hamlin’s open arms.

JoMae

4/20/18

#aprpad

Day 20 prompt:  take a line from an earlier poem
(preferably from this month) to begin your poem

Loose Thread #aprpad 19

Loose Thread

When your life has dropped a thread

and begins unraveling, a stitch is

necessary to halt the damage so
the whole is not forever lost

And if all is lost, the

errant thread reduced to

a ball of yarn, get out your

needle and create a beautiful

new you

out of that old yarn with all its

warmth and stories,  weave 

possibility and wonder knit 

with purpose and a smile

to wrap the old around

you, yet be new

JoMae

4/19/18

#aprpad

#aprpad 18 Temptation

Life is a Found Poem

Temptation

Ready to pick up a bit and make things nice for company

I am tempted to procrastinate some more because, oh

wouldn’t you know, I’ve stumbled on a pot of poetry

demanding to be read. Or listened to. Sent by a

friend. So rich. So full of texture - as are the 

poets and the poems she sent. I’m soon

lost, swimming in the wisdom of the

words. Combing through the

reveries they bring, Lost in

succumbing once again

I do confess, into

 temptation

JoMae

4/18/18

#aprpad

Life is a Found Poem
ONBEING.ORG
(Thanks, Jayne Heetderks)