presidential inauguration I will remember Bernie Sanders' mittens
Tuesday, January 12, 2021
falling snow the bluebird makes a spot for itself
sunset not much time to find the end of the trail
leaf litter I spy a striped chipmunk
fox kits the smallest one hiding behind its siblings
hummingbird the red rubies of tail feathers
glade coneflower the petals purple the air
busy june a swallowtail convention on a sandbar
redistributing the wealth a sweat bee spotted yellow with pollen
a waxwing crown almost invisible in the cedars
heavy rains the voice of water tumbling over rocky crags
waning summer a skink sliding over splintered logs with ease
midwestern fall hard to enjoy the scarlet leaves here
with a landfall hurricane in the south
cool september the smartweed caterpillar wearing its coat of many colors
3 deer each 1 looking at november from a different direction
tall grasses the brief splash of gold on a sunless day
Inspired by the 2016 Natural Events Calendar
Monday, January 11, 2021
political angst the gop has given elephants a bad name*
*referencing flak I got for something I wrote because it referenced Elephant Rocks State Park and democracy. It was interpreted as a pro-Trump message instead of a message of hope that is found in nature. Rocks that have been around for billions of years are still with us today and that is my hope for democracy and freedom, however naive that hope may be.
I thought about taking the post in question down but decided against it. Words can be interpreted in many different ways regardless of what I intended. People will see what they want to see. It also gave me perspective on what people who are conservative and labeled "far right" go through on a regular basis. I just got those same slings and arrows.
Sunday, January 10, 2021
mourning dove feathers puffed out in a battle with the frost
driftwood anchor an otter surveying the icy water
pintail duck in midair I could use a wingful of energy
may apple on the forest floor the sun finally reaching your bones
bewick's wren the lilacs can't be far away
a bullfrog's swim through the fallen leaves of the last storm
abandoned field fireflies creating their own path of light
years' past the pink columbine from Colorado here, too
allred lake the cypress older than our republic
wild geranium bloom I, too, have life lines
castor river the granite forms of resistance
rest stop the monarch shielded by a sunflower
orange sky the stained glass of sugar maples
gnarled cedar how many revolutions have you seen
cardinal bright morning the red notes of someone else's song
a ring-billed gull its wings tilting towards the new year
Inspired by 2013's Natural Events Calendar
Friday, January 8, 2021
pickle springs winter the rocks become snow-capped mountains
tufted titmouse the first hints of dawn in a gray sky
with eagle intensity a pilot before landing
woodland splash the coyote sees me first
lamps of mushrooms across the forest*
a defiant stare the sparrow holds onto the ice
independence day miles above the pink granite the milky way
green heron almost missing him under the tupelo
nature's fireworks the sensitive briar lights its own fuse
valentines in august the prairie roses
cathedral dasher with spindly legs and crystal wings
the post oaks next to the diamond scores of dead ash
a cypress swamp the fog settles in for the night
blue clusters mapping out the small world of cedar berries
hooded merganser you've taken my morning hair to a new level
the december hurry starts with flurries
*bonnet mushrooms
Inspired by the 2014 Natural Events Calendar
Thursday, January 7, 2021
snowstorm no one expecting the bluebird
morning hike a cottontail standing in the snow
ice crystal tethered to the briefness of winter
swift current the sycamores tinged with rust
hughes mountain a fog drifts into our silence
trail guide each black-eyed susan
snowy owl how many miles did I walk to get here
a white tail negotiating the riffles
female cardinal red enough to be a beacon in the cedar
spotting a gray fox every color in the crayon box
lunch time a butterfly in a field of thistle
a scraggly wildness in the milkweed blooms
no one knows how they got here gooseberries part of the fence
sunny umbrellas the gray headed coneflowers
it's not spring until the redbuds open
sleepy hollow the sudden gold of witches' butter
the purpleness of a prairie in september
rain clouds on our last walk together
Inspired by 2020's Natural Events Calendar
Sunday, January 3, 2021
frozen facebook page unfriended by winter
insomnia what do sheep count
years of neglect in the barn's collapse
black ice a skid turns serious
doctored documentary this is not what happened
subtle changes in the gray to grey clouds
the spaces of loneliness, the senseless clutter
repurposed keys and the doors they went to forgotten