Frog and Toad

I read a story. 

Joe and I laugh.

I read a page.

Joe reads the page.

It’s not perfect.

But it’s progress.

Tears

“Then the smith’s hard, craggy face twisted. Tears began to flow down his cheeks, and he dropped to his knees before Parsifal. “Tell me, sir, I beg you. Let me not wait another moment. Is it well with my master?”

The faery armorer,

Maker of Arthur’s 

Excalibur,

And Gawain’s

Galatine,

Sees the armor he made

Return on the person 

Of Parsifal,

Who healed King Anfortas.

Parsifal’s Page

“They set off, so many years ago, to find the one who would break the spell and heal their brother. They didn’t find him—they created him. Do not mourn these two; save your regrets for those whose lives serve no purpose at all.”

In this version of the Parsifal tale,

The knight has grown weary of his quest.

After failing the first time, 

Embittered,

He has little hope that he will ever succeed.

Yet, with the help of his page,

He finally gets back to the fisher king,

And asks the question

That heals the land.

There were three who had set out

Many years before, 

In order to find the one who was to come.

And he set out,

Relieved and joyful,

To tell the news of restoration.

Two, however, had died.

One was his mother, 

Who gave him life.

One was his uncle,

Who gave him hope. 

The third, yet living, 

Was the father of his page,

Who kept the hope alive.

Seventeen Years Ago

I lay down to sleep,

Remembering that seventeen years ago

At this very moment,

My body was in labor

For the first time. 

Dipping

As I sat on the stoop and worked,

I noticed something new.

Caleb’s hole, now filled with rainwater,

Had caught the eye of a dragonfly.

Hovering, she swiftly dipped her abdomen,

Again and again, in this small muddy puddle.

Each dip, she laid an egg,

A hundred times or more.

And I watched, both entranced

And repulsed.

Beautiful blue body, perfectly balanced,

But to lay in such a temporary site.

Mama, your efforts are sure to be wasted,

Your beautiful offspring destroyed.

And yet, if I scared her away,

There’s still no guarantee.

So I watched in silence and awe,

And was relieved on the morrow 

To see the pond intact.

Healing Service

I watched this healing service online, 

As words from the Holy Spirit came.

Healing was on its way. Just stand,

Or raise a hand. Come and be prayed.

And those in the audience,

If your hands are burning, 

The Holy Spirit is ready to do something.

Come. Be a part.

Ballet Class

After thinking about it all week,

And watching many snippets,

I finally paid the $20

For one online ballet class.

A video, I can watch again at will.

I had been trying some of the moves all day,

And by 11:15pm, I was ready to sleep.

Ten minutes yet to go!

And how fun to do something so easily completed. 

A single class, and done.

I can find another class,

Or I can quit. 

But either way . . . I’ve done it.