SOUTHERN EVENING
Come, breathe deeply
Of spring's aromas
On our walk through Georgia's soft, warm, heavy
Evening air
The pines, of course, pervade
But here and there
The waxy lemon of magnolia
And the sweet rush of wisteria
Brush our attention
As we pass the darkening lawns
Of pink and white dogwood
Solar lamp lighted
And pine straw mulched
DRK
5/2/17
Saturday, April 15, 2023
Saturday, April 8, 2023
MAYBE NEXT YEAR
Potholes occur.
But work on the roads?
Maybe next year.
Hope does endure –
see the suggestions below –
for those who drive
with the discipline required
to avoid the distractions
driving pleasures and civilities provide.
“Think less about driving fun,”
would be a good Rule One.
Focus on the surface,
not the scenery
or driving leisurely.
If you must have fun
leave your car behind
and take a 5- or a 10-k run.
A mechanic replaced my car’s front spring,
realigned the front end,
charged me five hundred bucks,
then recommended
“Drive slow,” Rule Two.
Won’t please followers
of slow-driver me.
But the goal of pot hole
management is
not their happiness.
Traffic is a distraction to ignore.
Watch the road, not someone else’s car.
To see potholes coming
use Rule Three, namely:
“Don’t follow closely.”
We prairie guys value elbow room,
but here they treat space as a liability.
Pass, change lanes and cut to fill in.
Time to make space a friend again.
Defend it against the cutters-in.
The discipline is –
if it’s traffic, ignore.
The communiques, the body language
of drivers you can’t satisfy –
let them rage.
Avoid that hole!
Yes, “Avoid those roads full of holes:” Rule Four.
Follow the roads still drive-able –
out of the way, to be sure
but detours capable
of protecting your car
while getting you . . .
who knows where.
Unfortunately for me
that’s my whole neighborhood.
We have invested so much in schools
we can’t afford the roads
to reach them.
Could mean home schooling for the grandchildren
but I can’t be sure.
Unable to get out there since the January thaw.
Now it’s April and our hole bumper crop has really matured.
I’ll see the kids again,
but in the meantime I continue
to search and share word
of roads that are good.
If you live at the end of one of the others,
maybe next year.
Dennis R. Keefe
May 1, 2009
UNCOVERING THE MAGIC
One of my fears
as a grandparent this year:
Easter’s magic would fail to appear.
Were
the kids too old
to drag out the stuff?
When ours stopped
it didn’t get done.
WE’RE GOING TO DYE EGGS AND DECORATE CUPCAKES
THEN YOU CAN GO BACK HOME
AND HUNT FOR EASTER BASKETS.
THERE IS A NOTE FROM THE BUNNY
WITH JELLY BEANS SCATTERED AROUND.
We can make a bunny village.
IF WE HAVE TWENTY FOUR EGGS AND THERE ARE FOUR OF YOU,
HOW MANY EGGS DO EACH OF YOU GET?
Look, they’re all hide-and-go-seeking
this bunny’s on guard
They want to bring the chicks to bunny town
it will be very exciting
WHERE IS THE EASTER EGG TREE?
HAS ANYONE SEEN THE EASTER EGG TREE?
I am the mayor of bunny town
and this is my crown.
They have to get all the way through bunny town to get it
and there are things that pop up out of the ground to get them.
OMIGOSH, I DIDN’T KNOW YOU COULD DO THAT
How many tablespoons of vinegar for the dye?
How do you make turquoise?
How about dark pink?
Don’t throw the dye away; I’ll be right back
I forgot to put eyes on mine
Look, I made an Indian
I want the frog decorations; you can have the chicks
Grandma, she’s taking too many!
No, we each get six! This is one of my six!
YES, YOU CAN EAT THEM
WE CAN EVEN MAKE DEVILED EGGS LATER
. . . WOW, THESE BASKETS ARE REALLY HIDDEN
I still can’t find mine
I’m the last one
DO YOU WANT A HINT?
IT’S IN THIS ROOM AND IT’S NOT IN THE MICROWAVE
(WE HIDE IT THERE EVERY YEAR)
DO YOU WANT TO HIDE EGGS?
Yes, can we do it inside?
We did it outside yesterday
If Jesus were an eight-year-old,
would he celebrate this way
with kids like ours,
bunnies, chickens, flowers and candy?
Maybe make up a new game?
The worries this year were premature.
Maybe it was Grandma Meme’s fuzzy bunny ears
Dennis R. Keefe
July 9, 2009
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)