hawthorn

with little blooms

your fragrance draws me in

to your branches covered in white

lovely

but why

you ask again

curiously wondering

wanting to know the why and how

of life

to write

and find your voice

beneath the day’s layers

of thoughts and idle distractions

these words

orchid

little pitcher

with a line of petals

fairy slippers line the forest’s

soft floor

the roar

of the ocean

is the overlapping

sound of thousands of waves coming

to shore

lily

I have a long

attention span for you

to sit and take in your beauty

camas

sweaters

that you take time

to knit – bring together

hold you in creative embrace

and warmth

stories

exist in mud

in feathers and in tracks

in trees, in brush, in the branches

a hunt

a breath

meditative

and running in full stride

transforms you beyond your body

alive

owlet

I see you there

peeking through the branches

quietly waiting and watching

these woods

seek these

little spaces

to listen to the birds

and dip your toes into sunlight

and breathe

dark – light

of contrast here

beauty together here

bounty and loss – birth and death here

shadows

sitka

with you I have

spiritual connection

I want to root down and be here

as one

garden

may I whisper

little thoughts of beauty

into your roots down into soil

to grow

ocean

I so miss you

with your thunderous roar

and salty mist that clings to me

I long

ellipse

relative path

travelled year after year

tilting into seasons of warmth

orbit

lilies

purple petals

with golden bursts of self

blanket the white oak forest floor

tonight

lovely

this little friend

walks across my ceiling

with eight fuzzy little black legs

hunting

dark clouds

backed by golden

sunlight – frame an eagle

dancing in the winds of Earth’s prayer

glory

filling

the space of you

with a single thread of

pure, focused, and intentional

embrace

marsh wren

with your bold calls

and your flared little tail

guard this bunch of grasses and reeds

with spunk

maybe

this poetry

of this little garden

is written in the verses of

flowers

you have

this geometry

comprised of infinite

points – a locus of existence

being

small buds

line the tree branches

catching the morning sun

with their silkiness and ready

to bloom

the swifts

have just arrived

and are swooping across

the mirror ponds – beautiful grace

they fly

a moon

a small sliver

glides slowly across sky

to kiss the earth delicately

good night

why do

some days feel like

they have viscosity

like thick honey or molasses

sticky

moments

of quietness

forest meditation

breathe in – breathe out – listen – birdsong

in peace

vultures

circle in winds

spiraling down and up

tilting sideways - gently playing

with air

tailwind

pushes you – go

run with the wind – stride – leap

over puddles with storm clouds deep

and fly

to map

one value to another

a feeling to color

a moment to volume or love

to light

to sit

with my small birds

at an open window

and play a banjo in the sun

lovely

so rich

is this life here

that you can remember

small glimpses of infinity

picture

ivy

pulled from this tree

with tenderness and love

releasing this friend from binding

heal now

warbler

up there you are

in this small white oak tree

arranging the moss and chirping

about

listen

to the stories

and knit this grey sweater

with a hot mint tea by your side

perfect

new year

new storms, new light

in a fractal of time

ancient water, life, sun - cycles

anew

this time

of equinox

is a time of flowers

and baby birds and beautiful

gardens

these strings

speak to my ears

in songs of boom-did-ee

with drop-thumbs and pull-offs and knocks

banjo

spring storms

bring forth rainbows

and robin choruses

with shifting light through dramatic

heavens

lil bird

lil brown creeper

with your little curved bill

delicately touching the moss

lil joy

raindrops

bring messages

from vast seas and glaciers

of ancient wisdom and cycles

of Earth

reflect

these rays of light

from mirror to mirror

until they find their resting place

absorb

puddles

contain pictures

in motion as you move

a play of perspective on earth

of light

human

it can be so

hard to be a human

capable of the things you need

to be

running

releases the

thoughts and experiences

of the day into a river

of strides

muddy

puddles reflect

beautiful trees and sky

these portals for robins to bathe

what joy

this world

makes me feel sad

I long for empathy

for all people, living beings

nature

flowers

from summers past

are remembered today

anticipation of vivid

colors

small steps

down the small branch

toward a friend at the end

to pass a berry - beak to beak

waxwings

stories

can let us be

in a “what if” of past

to play with memory and dreams

of mind

to sleep

deeply - soundly

is but a distant dream

something that is just out of grasp

sigh - moon

spring clouds

just seem heavy

as if the winter’s weight

is waiting to release - let go

and rest

this cloud

cradles the moon

in the same way I’ve held

little birds in my own two hands

with love

some days

are for slowness

days for recovery

quietness observed and deep breaths

taken

crossbill

up in the trees

I see glimpses of red

and hear your delight among the

pinecones

time now

seems to waiver

between sunshine and rain

between feeling the warmth and cold

spring storms

I walk

and come upon

a trail with memories

a moment with a fisher cat

then gone

soft ground

after spring rains

welcomes me with softness

calls me to sit with crocuses

and dream

this fog

that forms from the

Earth’s exhale in the dawn

filters my dreams, my thoughts, my mind

in beams

colors

against the dark

in arcs made of ancient

light and water that voyaged to

be - now

colors

that you cannot

see - rather intuit

guide you through these inner paths - to

a light

to run

with you down paths

of forest and green moss

or waterfalls or ocean is

a gift

a drop

then another

falls to the earth from clouds

nudging the springtime roots along

grow now

golden

fields of long grass

bring out the blue of sky

and the definition of light

meadow

muddy

these puddles still

reflect the sky and clouds

calling me to jump right into

this world

the leaves

push through the soil

as the days grow longer

in anticipation of the

flowers

create

allow yourself

to unleash beauty - flow

without constraints pour out your paint

of mind

sometimes

I am present

just a body in flight

powered by joyous gratitude

running

lefty

my dear crow friend

I know you by your wing

but love you for the mornings that

you bring

sparrows

with golden crowns

guard the gates to the woods

sentries at the meadow’s threshold

keep watch

snow falls

in the forest

pulling the trees limbs down

to gently touch snow covered earth

grounded

these words

that you think of

and write down each ev’ry day

change you - just by knowing you’ll write

notice

full moon

you bring on night

with a stunning entrance

sunlight reimagined and shared

in dark

kinglet

in the sunlight

your eye-catching ruby

crowns your fluffy figure with joy

in moss

label

each little bird

by its chirps, calls, and taps

with eyes closed and ears wide open

listen

rhythms

of breath and step

as I run through these woods

blend into a meditation

to run

this thought

surely has been

and will be thought again

fractals of humankind’s musings

echoed

sunset

held between clouds

and this mountainous earth

draws my presence into the light

beyond

this light

that catches clouds

as they blow quickly by

brings a winter glow - golden and

misty

orchid

with your orange

and red hues in winter

looking out my window at birds

beauty

scrub jay

hide your gems there

in the pots on the porch

or in the moss of the oak tree

treasure

morning

brings us to light

from depth of the mind

an awareness of being - breath

and sight

waxwing

I hear you there

with your peeps and your squeaks

passing berries along the line

such play

just play

that game and smile

be the child that you are

be the naturalist, a seer

of life

oh moon

where have you been?

the earth beneath my feet

and the clouds above obscure you

come back

I run

with the breath of

so many runners that

ran generations before me

of time

here snipe

my friend at dusk

hiding in the tall grass

a gift to see you here today

hidden

morning

you have sent me

a dearest friend - a crow

to bless me with conversation

I smile

tundra

you send us birds

for our winters to watch

visitors to lighten the grey

a joy

these oaks

among golden

grasses and marsh

diffuse the sunlight in forest

to awe

coded

stitch knit and purl

form a message of warmth

with your loving hands create this

beanie

to love

that moment when

you become aware that

you are thinking differently now

- to learn

up there

in the branches

you can perch at sunset

to soak in those last beams of light

for warmth

duet

you hoot in trees

with my ears between you

please tell me of your day as the

sun sets

pressure

of yourself and this

earth in which you exist

kissing the ground with your being

in thanks

like rocks

that wash ashore

for but a single tide

you find yourself in a moment

be here

these fields

of your mind - soul

have grasses that whisper

to the robins of your heart - to

sunbathe

my bird

my little bird

I love to watch you play

the absolute joy of a bath

is light

silence

is when this mind

stops hearing all the sounds

both internal and external - then

it's quiet

breathe out

between the trees

in the mists of quiet

thoughts - present and yet of nothing

breathe in

a day

for pausing - breathe

a day to watch your thoughts

to contemplate the little things

and clouds

ist forms

on evening

condensing on the last

golden glow of winter's warm light

difuse

soft wool

between fingers

forms loops of a structure

that leans, folds, manifests through nodes

and links

music

connects these feet

these arms, this body here

to nature, to the spirit, mind

in beats

you moons

oh, jupiter

shine brightly next to ours

on this winter night - geese in flight

this sky

tree tops

fill with your calls

from one to the next tree

passing the moon, catching the sun

in flight

winter

branches reach out

in the cold evening

towards the last light and waxing moon

to touch

flying

you play on wind

feathers in a river

of current - an eloquent dance

with clouds

you root

deep in this ground

to bring yourself to sky

letting currents of wind flow through

branches

small friend

I see you there

my ruby-crowned kinglet

as you flit and dance in the moss

at dusk

fiber

between fingers

is but a medium

to be sculpted with lines of code

knitting

this mind

drifts to beauty

even as my body

walks through these woods – fantasy in

layers

misty

this obscured road

focuses the present

hidden are the future and past

in clouds

river

you are so full

from the gathering rain

flowing from the fabric folds of

this earth

just stop

and wait right here

for a moment - listen

and the birds might just manifest

in song

deepen

in this stretch here

of self, of mind, body

to find the areas to work on

and grow

silence

is now a state

of mind only - not ears

a deliberate practice - breathe

to quiet

the wind

flows through branches

carrying scents of sea

of mountains, of forest, of life

a dream

silence

is now a state

of mind only - not ears

a deliberate practice - breathe

to quiet

cooper's

you clever bird

hiding, waiting, watching

for the right moment to take flight

and eat

a break

in clouds this night

to sneak out the backdoor

and glimpse at stars - celestial

wonder

my friend

sits in my oak

and observes this small home

every morn, coffee with a crow

perfect

mist sits

in this valley

in a space between light

at dawn with the moon looking on

in thought

this rain

is an ocean

that has changed its state - form

and travelled the sky - just to be

with you