Mindful Writing Challenge 2013~Week 4

January 22nd, 2013

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King Tut, once a roly-poly pup

now an elderly statesman

But wait!!

The Mambo King returns

gyrating madly with joy,

channeling his inner pup

January 23^rd, 2013

String of Karma Flags

 dancing in the breeze

prayers lifting from their colored flanks

carrying peace and blessings on the wind.

~
Thursday, January 24^th, 2013

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Fat cat on tabletop, staring defiantly.

I ask “Why are you there,

you know it's forbidden, right?”

Henry

~

No matter that I've told him thrice “Don't do that!”

There he is again, the fat cat on the mat.

Staring ,slightly irritated, deep into my mug

I address him rather sharply and he barely looks up.

Then to really let me know he doesn't care a bit,

he lifts his paw up languidly and gives a casual lick.

~

He arrived here many years ago, a slim and rangy stray

But now he rules our house with ease, growing larger each day.

He's taken over everything, our table and our bed,

we're lucky if he leaves a space for us to lay our head.

He sleeps all day and stomps all night, throughout the quiet house

The other cats are then asleep and he's Lord of the House.

That said, we do love him, that damned, rebellious cat. 

~
3^rd stone of the day

Angry words created churning waves and dark currents,

May kindness and patience smooth all.

Allowing clearing waters to once again reflect goodness,

taking us back to our path of being mindful and true

January 25th, 2013

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The delicate taste and fragrant wisps, which arise from my cup,

bring back memories of a day spend at the foot of Mt. Shasta

Majestic, magic mountain, towering over the small town which lies just below it's snowy flanks.

New Age shops, Crystal Emporiums & Bookstores crowd the small Main Street.

There, the tea shop at last, a treasure drove of fragrant brews.

Each time we discover anew the joys of real tea.

Not from a cardboard box filled with dangly bags, but row upon row of large tins

full of mysterious leaved treasures, which brew to rich perfection in our pot.

This time Citrus Sunrise, with a fragrance so rich, a taste so bright

it nudges aside the gloomy, cold day which blankets the valley.

A sip and serenity settles on my shoulders like a comforting shawl. 
~

January 26^th, 2013

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Foggy, damp morning birds are waiting

~

Gilded ruffles kissed by setting sun

Shrill bird chatter... sparrows roost

January 27^th, 2013

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Moonlight Walk

~

Walking the property

Magic, dark velvet night

Full moon hangs in the sky

rainbow aura around it

first suspended in a bare oak

then in the arms of a pine,

suddenly swallowed whole by clouds

then appearing once again~ serene and mesmerizing.

Just before the land falls gently, I can hear the creek tumbling over the rocks

and there, can you hear them?

First peepers of the year, singing along the banks,

echoing throughout the canyon.

Is this magic? Am I this blessed to be inhabiting a bit of heaven?

January 28th, 2013
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Winter bare branches, bird nests revealed

Vacant homes, occupants gone south

Waiting for seasons to turn

January 29^th, 2013

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Einstein...............what genius, yet so human

His warm soul right there in his eyes,

Like a wistful dandelion.

January 30th, 2013

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There you were,

no longer wanted or attractive,

laying in the bargain basket of spent plants.

Now perched on my windowsill,

quietly announcing your pleasure

at having been saved from certain death

by putting forth, dainty, delicate new life.

Sweet tendrils, tiny new leaves, reaching,

savoring the morning sun and this

new chance to thrive.

If only everything in life were that simple.

January 31^st. 2013

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Winter sun

Rosemary is blooming

Pale, blue blossoms buzzing with delighted bees

Mindful Writing Challenge 2013~ Week 3

January 15th, 2013

As the sky slowly darkens, the first stars appear.

Little did we know those many years ago, upon our move to the deepest country, that the Milky Way would be our constant, celestial lightsource on clear nights.

~

January 16th, 2013

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Crescent Moon,

afloat in a milky puddle of light.

Against the deep night sky,

I can see your dark side.

 January 17th, 2013

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Nights, some spend curled neatly beneath warm covers, blissfully resting, at peace.

All worries and cares seem buried beneath a deep layer of comforting sleep.

Yet others, constant tossing and turning, wild dreams and thoughts churning,

Unable to find respite, unable to find that place of peace. Waking spend ,as if having fought a night long battle.

~

January 18^th, 2013

Mid-morning already! Seems like only moments since I rose,

reluctantly sliding out from under warm, cozy covers.

Frosty grass and frozen birdbaths greeted me.

But now, the winter sun is gently melting all, tiny wisps of steam rising.

Old cats savoring the warming rays, melting in pools of sunshine.

~

January 19th, 2013

Early morning, darkness still cloaks the garden.
Sitting here, hands wrapped around a mug of hot morning tea.
Savoring small stones, placed while I slept, on the other side of the world.
Our night being someone elses creative, bright day. 
But here we meet, in the middle, sharing small stones.

~

January 20^th, 2013

Stray thoughts and words, flitting through my mind,

will they ever settle long enough
 to capture?

January 21^st, 2013

Zen Room, oasis of tranquility

Wooden owl, crystal eyed, gently swinging in sunlit window

Searching the sage-green walls with rainbow eyes

Mindful Writing Challenge 2013~Week 2

Tuesday, January 8th, 2013

Tule Fog~hiding the familiar landscape with drifting shrouds,

Now and then cattle are revealed, some calmy grazing, 

some gazing into the fog, as if searching the milky depths.

Trees appear, like ghosts,

Sun hanging in the fog like a full moon, eerily captivating.

Wednesday, January 9th, 2013

Delectable, moist, fruitfilled Christmas Stollen,

unearthed from Mom's Treasure Chest, newly arrived from Germany.

Washed down with hot Assam brought back by a friend from Britain. 

Is this International Heaven?

Thursday, January 10th, 2013

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Yoga, how I love the slow stretching of tight muscles,

balancing both body and mind. How did I do so long without it?

I never thought that at my time in life I would regain a flexibility that was barely mine as a young woman.

Though build like an athelete, sports was never my thing.

Then chronic illness brought me to Tai Chi and from there to yoga.

How I love the slow waking of the tight, cold muscles.

The moves to stretch and balance.

Then Savasana, the slow settling back in and turning inward.

Sometimes the mind keeps dancing, others I slip into a quiet place.

The final bells bring me back from the edge, back to reality.

I feel taller, stronger, ready to take on the world. 

~

Friday, January 11th, 2013

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Birdfeeder~alive with fluttering and twittering hordes,

like JFK during commuter rush hour, Departures and Arrivals coming and going in a steady stream.

Filling the “terminal”, circling above, sitting patiently...or not

Awaiting their call to board?

~

Saturday, January 12th, 2013

Cold California day, enduring an Alaskan coldfront.

Early morning ice coats the birdbath. 

Bare trees are heavy with feathered fruit, impatiently waiting for their morning feed. 

We sit inside, huddled by the heater after going out briefly braving the cold , in answer to their plea.

~

January 13^th, 2013

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Turkey vultures, drawing last lazy spirals in the sky,

their backdrop gilded clouds .

Finally heading for their roosting trees to brave the coming cold night.

Such homely souls, but how they soar. Awkward bodies on ground, transformed in flight.

~

Monday, January 14^th, 2013

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Morning woodland walk, young dogs strain at leashes,

old boy ambles off leash, sniffing, stopping, finding wild pig rootings.

Eagerly he explores his morning delight.

Mindful Writing Challenge January 2013~Small Stones

Yesterday I bravely posted my first small stone on the FB page "Mindful Writing Challenge 2013."  I shall copy my posts here as well, in order to be able to go back through this blog to reread my daily thoughts.


January 1st, 2013

This morning the canyon behind our house was alive with Robins. Singing joyfully while harvesting the Toyon berries. Each winter they come through in large flocks. An auspicious start to the New Year?!


January 2nd, 2013

Outside, early morning sunrays falling on diamonds of frost everywhere. Inside small whisps of steam rise from our cups of Chai. Hot Scottish oats, topped with homemade Quince-Orange Compote and a drizzle of amber Maple syrup warm our stomachs and hearts as the sun warms the earth outside. Blessed!!

January 3rd, 2013

Country Roads......how lucky we are to travel them on our trips to town. Just two lanes weaving up and down, turning just enough to change our view. On both sides amazing views of the mountain ranges, covered in snow nearly down to the valley floor. Newly greening pastures, dotted with cattle. Perfect lead up to yoga!!

January 4th, 2013

One by one they leave us, endearing kittenhood long past. Tottering along on at times unsteady legs. Remembering days of speed and prowess in their elderly cat dreams, paws and tails twitching. Yet still savoring sunny days and gentle strokes, rewarded with rumbling purrs. For seventeen years they've graced our lives. But now quietly they slip away, one by one. Gone, but never forgotten.

January 5th, 2013

Interstate 5, heading for home. We slow for our exit and my eyes skim lazily down the bank of Coyote Creek, just before our turn. Winterbare trees reach toward the gray sky with long, thin fingers. And then, as my eyes turn upward, two large silhouettes in a tree. Suddenly the heads turn, revealing in the diffused afternoon light, white majesty. A pair of Bald Eagles. Our day felt blessed in that short moment and my small stone was born.

January 6th, 2013

Vees of Canadian Geese, flying North? South?
No, just rising briefly from a pond, circling and then landing once again
on the glistening surface below.
Before re-entry, the mirror-like eye reflected their reaching feet and the sky above.
Now ripples cross the pond, curling up gently on the shoreline.

January 7th, 2013

Early morning, the house yet dark and cold.
I light a candle to bring instant warmth to the table,
while sipping my morning tea, looking inward.