Kathie's Poet Tree

Robin's Egg Blue

2012-02-02T18:39:00.001-05:00

Though it is February first, it feels like the end of winter

My woodpile is getting low and the temperature is rising

Down by the Shawsheen River the robins flood the banks

Red-breasted and bold, digging in the forest duff,

kicking and picking with their beaks,

they are a sure sign of spring in this warm rain,

and now the rain clouds are breaking apart

become tattered fleece in a sky as blue as a robin’s egg,

then even the clouds are gone and all I see is blue,

robin’s egg blue

and I wonder how long it will be

before I find a Robin’s nest with sky blue eggs nestled inside?

~Kathie Adams Brown (February 1, 2012)

Skywatch Friday

Poem for a Winter's Day

2012-01-12T13:45:00.000-05:00

I watch the steady fall of rain against the dove gray sky

Outside my window a few snowflakes fall like tiny pearls among liquid rhinestones

And in the hedgerow the sparrows gather with juncos hopping

Like slate colored shadows

The cardinals shyly watching are the only flash of color on this stormy day.

Here inside from where I watch the fire crackles on the hearth

Its warmth pressing against my back.

It is a pleasant place to be, inside looking out

And I feel the primeval need of this moment

In this technological world I now live in.

I pour myself another cup of tea, and settle in.

~Kathie Adams Brown (January 12, 2012)

Old Tree (Part 3)

2011-12-30T17:38:00.003-05:00

Old Tree knows

The ways of the woods

The life that goes on and

The life that ends.

Old tree knows what renewal is

As each spring it is reborn again and again.

Yet old tree knows that when its time is done

It’s time to let go, release and become

One with the earth from which it was born

Supplying new roots with fresh nutrients from its tree bones.

~Kathie Adams Brown (December 23, 2011)

Old Tree (Part 2)

2011-12-27T17:34:00.003-05:00

Old Tree,

I want to reach up to that cerulean blue sky,

I want to sway in the wind when it passes by,

I want to reach down with roots to grasp the earth strong,

Old tree, like you, I just want to belong.

~Kathie Adams Brown

Old Tree (Part 1)

2011-12-23T17:33:00.000-05:00

Old tree in the woods,

Quiet and tall

Standing there day after day

Through storms and sunshine,

Sunrises and sunsets

Leaf drop and new leaves

and all that you’ve seen,

if I come close and listen

will you whisper your secrets to me,

or, lend me your strength

so I can reach down,

take hold, and grow

strong roots like you?

~Kathie Adams Brown (12-23-11)

Autumn in the Oaks Woods

2011-11-10T15:19:00.002-05:00

There is a softness in the woods in autumn,
A stillness on a calm day
When leaves drift downwards
and pine needles tumble
and the air is pungent with dirt and dampness.
It is then that moss grows thick like velvet
on tree trunks, rocks and ground,
when the rust littered forest floor
crackles where you step.
Yes, there is a softness
a gentle good-bye to summer,
and a hush before winter begins.

~Kathie Adams Brown (11-10-11)

A River Flows

2011-10-12T23:56:00.000-04:00

When tragedy comes,
A river flows
from my heart is a great swell of tears and emotions
and I am swept away
only to be tossed upon the shore
farther along in my life
bruised and battered
by the rocks and debris
lying unseen beneath the churning rapids.

Then, tossed upon the sand;
lying in the gravel,
my heart thunders in my chest
until it gains its quiet.
And I lie there in the sunshine
or the moonlight,
whatever the case may be
and breathe earth scents
and water, and life,
and rise again.

~Kathie Adams Brown (October 12, 2011)

One Single Impression

Prompt 189: River

The Artist in Me

2011-10-05T10:58:00.001-04:00

There is an artist in me,

A stirring in my soul, a creativity I need to indulge,

So why do I deny it?

Art must be honored,

Preserved,

Expressed.

I will find my way out there,

And inward,

To that busy place,

Quiet place,

Active place

Of creativity.

~Kathie Adams Brown (October 5, 2011)

OSI Promt 188: Language

Grackles

2011-09-27T08:41:00.000-04:00

Grackles,
falling like a plague on my feeders,
feeding like locusts in a frenzy,
black leaves in autumn--here,
and then gone
Migration.

~Kathie Adams Brown

When Autumn was Delayed

2011-09-25T08:40:00.000-04:00

I am ready for Autumn but,
it has been delayed,
after a brief tease of
cool nights
and crisp days
with the smoke of a wood fire
lingering in the night air
the sultry gray days of summer have returned
with mugginess, humidity, and mosquitoes
slugs slide across the lawn
a few gold tinted leave flutter to the damp ground
but everything hangs in this thick, soupy air
Waiting.

~Kathie Adams Brown (September 25, 2011)

I Know What is Coming

2011-08-23T18:34:00.000-04:00

The Summer Grasses are starting to fade,
Daylight is slipping away,
I see the hint of color in the leaves,
and I know what is coming.
As blackbirds gather into flocks by the thousands
preparing to become a black ribbon in the blue sky
I feel the coming dormancy,
the future leaf drop,
the coming snow.
I feel the darkness coming,
and the dread.
I know what is coming...

~Kathie Adams Brown (August 20, 2011)

A Symphony of Silence

2011-08-16T17:01:00.000-04:00

Silence…Is a blanket of calm

Wrapped around me—

A stillness in my heart and my soul,

A quiet place of peace.

Silence…is a gag

Holding back my words,

Restraining my thoughts,

Restraining my voice,

Keeping a secret,

Allowing a lie to exist.

Silence is the non-sound

Of wings in the night,

Falling on prey,

Swift and sudden,

Unheard and unknown,

Then it is over.

Silence…is the sweet calm in the night,

The soft rocking of a chair,

And a newborn finally asleep.

~Kathie Adams Brown (August 14, 2011)

One Single Impression Prompt 181: Silence

My Name is Fire

2011-08-11T00:42:00.000-04:00

My name is Fire,
but I have fur
and a feisty temperment.
In the northern forest
I make my home
I scamper about on branches and scold
flicking my tail
of rusty red,
who am I
and what have I said?

~Kathie Adams Brown (May 23, 2011)

Maybe it's the Moonlight

2011-07-15T03:01:00.000-04:00

Maybe it's the moonlight that's keeping me awake,
here on this summer night with teenagers wandering the streets
and cats fighting in the yard.
I heard their caterwauling,
then a car goes by,
and I am sitting here
in the false glow of my computer screen
missing out on moonlight.

I think I'll take a break
and shut this computer down
so I can hear the soft plop of water droplets from the recent rain,
and see the silver light of the summer moon
as it slips down the velvet sky towards dawn.

~Kathie Adams Brown (7-15-11)

After the Rain

2011-06-08T20:24:00.000-04:00

I walk down the street

Past branches now laden

With fat green leaves

And glistening droplets.

This backdrop of spring

Is soft gray and slate

With emerald grass lawns

And lilacs in bloom.

Along the street I find small puddles

Clear at the top but thick blood brown

At the bottom

It looks like serum

Separated in a centrifuge

With platelets and red blood cells

And plasma

Is this the blood of springtime

Enriching the soil,

Causing all these trees to grow?

I like to think it is, so…

Drink up trees, ‘cause summer’s comin’

And I need some shade!

~Kathie Adams Brown (May 23, 2011)

Fire Song

2011-06-05T20:09:00.000-04:00

Laughing, dancing, licking,

Yellow-warmth-light

Wood smoke and embers

Sizzle sing and spark

POP! Snap! Crackle song,

Fragrant and warm,

Curling around me,

Embracing me,

With comforting music

On a cold and dreary

day.

~Kathie Adams Brown (5-23-11)

Water Music

2011-05-22T22:30:00.000-04:00

I can hear the music
the steady lullaby
of water in the night
slipping through the dark,
sliding down the roof,
falling to the ground.
My soul is thirsty
for this refreshing song
of water music--
a rainstorm in the night.

~Kathie Adams Brown (May 19, 2011)

Bobolink

2011-05-20T23:02:00.000-04:00

In a sea of green waving grass you flutter
up in jubilant song
black feathers, yellow and white excitement,
with notes incomprehensible,
a melody that captures the heart and
raptures the soul
in one glorious exhibition,
one small bird
in a hay field
in spring.

~Kathie Adams Brown (May 20, 2011)

One Single Impression Prompt 168: Exhibition

The Dragon in His Den

2011-05-20T22:45:00.000-04:00

The Dragon in his den,
separate from men,
in a world of his own making,
unattatched and unacknowledged.
He is angry that the world
does not notice him,
does not bow down to him,
so he ROARS!
He spews his anger and his pain
on everyone he meets, then,
grows silent again.
He yawns his boredom at authority,
he never meets your eyes,
He strikes!
then scampers back to his cave
to wallow in his own stew
of fear, self-pity, and arrogance.

~Kathie Adams Brown (May 19, 2011)

I Did Not Know What Spring Would Bring

2011-04-20T15:45:00.000-04:00

Red-winged blackbirds that trill at dawn,
Robins hunting on the lawn,
Muskrats swimming in sunset light,
Wood ducks nesting in the night,
Phoebes freely flicking tails,
Reeds and cattails hiding Rails,
Tree swallows swooping through the air,
Grackles, grackles, everywhere,
Chipmunk sitting on a stone,
Great Blue Heron flies alone,
To see it all makes my heart sing,
I did not know what spring would bring!

~Kathie Adams Brown (April 13, 2011)

The Bones of Winter

2011-04-13T17:40:00.000-04:00

Remnants of snow melt into the lake
Swelling its pewter volume to flow like liquid glass
Into the forest edges,
and here I stand among the wet leaves,
brown and rotting on the earth
it’s not quite warm enough yet
for new leaves to unfold,
tender and lime green;
the fingers of sunlight have yet to reach
deep into the soil and caress life into the dormant roots
stroking them tenderly
and encouraging the sap to flow,
enticing new life from black earth.

I see the bones of winter around me
rib cage hung with sinew
hide still on the head
It’s been a long, hard winter
With teeth like a coyote
Biting into flesh,
but with the return of the sun I feel new life
boiling in my soul,
I feel it surging like the rivers
swollen with snowmelt
washing away winter’s bones.

~Kathie Adams Brown (April 13, 2011)

I've Been Waiting for the Crocuses

2011-03-20T06:11:00.000-04:00

I've been waiting for the crocuses

to poke their tender shoots

through frozen earth mud

and point the way skyward

until the warm kiss of spring

causes them to swell

and burst forth in bloom

with petal colors like confetti

strewn across the lawn.

~Kathie Adams Brown (3-7-11)

Crocuses in my backyard 3-18-11

Twilight, Gray Light

2011-03-11T09:50:00.000-05:00

Twilight,
Gray Light,
Trees toss,
Birds cross,
Skyway,
Highway,
for all creatures
with wings!

~Kathie Adams Brown

Skywatch Friday

The Barren Beauty

2011-03-08T18:45:00.000-05:00

In the barren beauty of the bog
life stirs
beneath the silver frozeness
spring's warmth is waiting
to melt and caress
the earth's stubby face.

In the forest the trees blush
red, then lime green with new
shoots tender and translucent;
the birds return with songs
bursting in their breasts,
and nesting materials in their beaks,
and eggs warm in the nest.

~Kathie Adams Brown (3-7-11)

Ghosts in the Forest (Inspired by Debby Kaspari's Art)

2011-02-27T13:32:00.000-05:00

Ancient dreams
ancient bones
old stones
forgotton memories
linger in the mist
wafting through the trees
reaching through the ages
to tickle our brains
with questions
and musings
and curiosity
until the stories pile
bone on bone or
stone on stone
and an image is formed
of what was,
what is, and
what will be.

~Kathie Adams Brown (February 25, 2011)

Inspired by the paintings of Debby Kaspari The Ghosts in the Forest

In the Backyard the Rain

2011-02-25T18:59:00.000-05:00

In the backyard the rain
pounding forms a small pond
up against the iceberg
formed by the last snow storms,
dirty snow piled high
pushed away so one can enter
this backyard landscape, a miniature version
of this wide snowy world
in transition.
Soon the crocus will bloom in the front yard.
Soon, soon.

~ Kathie Adams Brown (February 25, 2011)

Endless Winter

2011-02-16T16:27:00.000-05:00

Ice-coated dreams

Running down the windows

Running down the walls

Encasing all in its dripping grip

Of an endless winter.

~Kathie Adams Brown 2-5-11

Inner Strength

2011-02-12T16:20:00.000-05:00

That muscled oak
Outside my window
Lifting strong gray arms
To hold up the sky
Lifts me up also
When I feel weak
Inside.

~Kathie Adams Brown 2-5-11

Aroostook County Winter

2011-02-10T04:00:00.000-05:00

The sun shone today.
It glistened and sparkled on the snow.
The wind blew cold upon me
And I felt trapped.
No longer does the beauty
Of this place touch me
The isolation has become a trap.
I feel that I must flee, but,
Where to?
What do I want?
Where is the place
That I can call Home?

~Kathiesbirds (1-22-98)

And the Dragon Roars

2011-02-08T11:48:00.001-05:00

I live beneath the dragon’s lair
I listen to him roar
I hear him daily stomp his feet
Above me on his floor
He spews his venom on the world
No matter whom you are
He doesn’t care whom he burns
Or if he leaves a scar
For the dragon only knows one thing
He cares only for himself.

The raging dragon licks his wounds
and blames the passing world
for everything his flaming tongue
brings back on him:

For every charred ember,
For all the soot in his life,
For all the darkness he dwells in.

He does not see
That he is the source
Of his own misery.
And the Dragon R-O-A-R-S!

~Kathie Adams Brown (2-8-11)

This Winter White

2011-02-05T15:58:00.000-05:00

When the winter dark and dreary
makes me feel, oh so weary,
and my eyes get oh so blurry,
from looking at all this white!
I start to think of sunny things,
pretty flowers, birds with wings,
hiking on a sunny day
through grasses green
and fresh mown hay,
it lifts my spirits and my mind
and mentally I leave behind
this cold white cage that quells my song,
this winter white and deep and long.

~Kathie Adams Brown (2-5-11)

Abundance

2011-01-20T20:50:00.000-05:00

Abundance is more than food

or drink,

It is a fullness of heart,

a thankfulness,

a contenment in the soul,

a serenity.

It is a warm and quiet place to eat your breakfast

On a cold winter’s day.

~Kathie Adams Brown (1-20-11)

One Single Impression

The Little Emperor

2011-01-16T15:19:00.000-05:00

The Little Emperor stomps his feet
demanding all the time
that the world revolve around him,
that the world bow down to him,
that the world get out of his way,
for he is coming through.

The Little Emperor will shout
with words both loud and vulgar
he has no care for others,
he has no thought but for himself,
he sees no pain but his own,
he hears no plea but his own,
he is the center of his own world,
and all else revolves around HIM.

The Little Emperor is large
in height and breadth and width,
but in a mystery he can't fathom,
the more he puffs himself up
the smaller he becomes.

~Kathie Adams Brown (1-15-11)

Winter Bog

2011-01-01T17:30:00.000-05:00

Winter Bog 1-1-11

The winter bog is stark and lovely,

blue and rust, bare bones and ice,

a quiet place for life

until the raucous crows crow! ~KAB

A Walk on a Rainy Autumn Night in New England

2010-11-10T04:41:00.000-05:00

Wet leaves plastered to sleek shining pavement

Yellow light splashing a golden path

Moist-earthy-leaf smell wafting around me

While dark shadows dance in the nearby woods

I hear the steady hum of traffic out on the street

As I walk through the night

I keep following my feet.

~Kathie Adams Brown (October 27, 2010)

I Got Lost in my Day Today

2010-11-03T04:12:00.000-04:00

I got lost in my day today
amidst rain drops
and grackles on the lawn,
and phone calls
and chats with friends,
then the landlord came by
and fixed a broken light
while I warmed beef stew for lunch
on the old gas stove.

I looked at the bright orange carrots
floating in the steamy broth
with potatoes and bits of beef
before gobbling it all down
warm in my belly
a defense against this cold wet day.

It is autumn here
and the rusty leaves are falling
thick as rain drops
and the chickadees are calling
outside my window
and suddenly night has fallen
and I wonder where the day went-

A day full of details tiny and sweet
Added together they fill the space
Between rising
and falling asleep.

~Kathie Adams Brown (October 27, 2010)

Monument in the Park

2010-09-29T15:20:00.000-04:00

As a child I crossed the road
to the Civil War Monument
in the park across the street
from my grandparents house
where my siblings and I
rolled giggling down the green slopes
that raised the stone soldier
to the sky

names chiseled into the sides
have become lichen-covered,
faded, and forgotten
the slopes seem more gentle now
and not nearly as high

are all monuments like this
created in moments of grief
to honor the dead
who fought for us
and now
generations later
while a new war rages
and our children play on green slopes
will we remember our soldiers
and build new monuments to them

I don't want a monument.
I just want them all to come home safely
and watch their children play
on green slopes.

~Kathie Adams Brown (September 28, 2010)

One Single Impression Prompt 135: Monument

September Pond

2010-09-28T21:46:00.000-04:00

The silence of a September pond
rippling like molten lead,
cool as an autumn breeze,
embraced by trees,
velvety evergreens,
yellow-coined birches, alder, oak,
red-spangled maples,
reflected in still waters
where
a lone water lily
a white flame on a wet lily-pad floor
opens to the rain,
silver droplets falling to its center,
opening its heart,
opening my heart
to receive this autumn day,
this stormy silence.

~Kathiesbirds (September 28, 2010 Babcock Pond, Colchester, CT)

September Ocean

2010-09-21T21:59:00.000-04:00

It has been so long since waves
have pounded their sweet song in my ears,
since sea gulls have gathered in the sky or on the sand,
since sea shells have collected beneath my feet.
White foam reaches for my soles
I giggle at the feel of salty wetness caressing my toes,
clouds of gray-steel-blue crumple overhead
with curtains of light streaming through.
The beach is vacant save for those few
who treasure this autumn ocean mood,
this solitude, this ocean song
that dances through my being once again.

~kathie adams brown 9-17-10

A Poem From my Hotel at Night

2010-09-17T21:59:00.000-04:00

And the light on the trees at night is silver
when Orion sails thorugh the sky,
while the tires of trucks hum on the highway
as the night is passing by,
and I in my hotel room am dreaming
of places I've yet to see,
in this little town next to the highway
with my love cuddled next to me.

~Kathie Adams Brown 9-16-10 @ 2:45 a.m. Methuen, MA

Poet's Song

2010-07-29T02:53:00.000-04:00

Give me a word and I’ll write you a poem,
Send me a thought
And I will create
Line upon line,
Rhyme upon rhyme,
Meter upon meter,
Or not.

Poetry is in my soul
And I will sing her song until I die.

~Kathie Adams Brown (October, 20, 2009)

The Wild Wind

2010-07-22T02:50:00.000-04:00

The wild wind is calling me
I need to go outside
The restless wind is beckoning
I have to know just why
Without a thought my feet rush out
And I am following
This inner urge that drives me out;
This heart cry,
This wildness,
This wilderness inside.

~Kathie Adams Brown (October 20, 2009)

You are Always There to Love Me

2010-07-15T02:46:00.000-04:00

You are always there to love me,
You are my soft place to fall,
I swim in your love like an ocean

Gently rocking me,
Gently rocking me,
Softly calling me

Home to your heart.

~Kathie Adams Brown 5-4-09

Questioning Robert Frost On This Road

2010-07-10T03:13:00.000-04:00

We all know the adage of “The Road Not Taken,”
The poems and stories written that use this metaphor,
But what of when the road is real
And you are peering down its stony path and wondering
If you should follow where the road leads
Or strike out on your own?
There are no prophets here
To predict what lies ahead,
The decision is my own
And I must take the steps
This is not a metaphor,
this is my life,
and it is all about to change
on this road.

~kathie adams brown (7-9-10)

OSI Prompt 123: Roads

Floating Through the Night Sky

2010-07-10T02:10:00.000-04:00

Floating
In the white light
Climbing the stars to heaven
Black velvet encompasses me
And I drift
Among the planets
I slide down the milkyway
And ride a comet through the sky
‘till I land on the crescent moon
And rock myself to sleep.
~Kathie Adams Brown (5-16-10)

OSI Prompt 117: Floating

(Poet's note: I know I am way behind and these poems are out of order. I am trying to get caught up and publishing whatever inspires me.)

My Daughter Rides

2010-06-22T05:34:00.000-04:00

Some dreams are born
While we are young
And never fulfilled,
They are passed on
To our offspring
And so my daughter rides
The horses I once dreamed of
And I watch in wonder as
She moves in harmony
With the creature of my dreams
The horse I so desired,
But, I am not jealous
Nor filled with regret
Her dream is now fulfilled,
And I am content.

~Kathie Adams Brown (May 16, 2010)

OSI Prompt 118: LOVE

About My Brother

2010-05-20T10:46:00.000-04:00

Some cracks start small as fissures
In a family
and widen into gaps
decades long
and a continent wide
Until the person you once knew
becomes a stranger
or an unknown soul
Connected only by blood
and DNA.
and the uncomfortable canyon
becomes normal
-not a place you dwell in,
but a rim you live on
and every now and then
gaze across and wonder
about the person
on the other side.

~kathie adams brown (May 16, 2010)

One Single Impression Prompt 113: fissures

Throw Away Your Mask

2010-05-16T23:01:00.000-04:00

Do I really need the finer things in life?
Are the finest things material and manmade?
Will a fancy car, the right house, the right address really
Make me happy,
Fill the gap, span the great divide?
Are diamonds really a girl’s best friend?
Or is it all a mask,
A finely woven web
To deceive ourselves
That we are alive
and not dead?

The natural world around us
Gently sings her song
Calling me to come and play,
Calling me to run away,
From all the entanglements
And fancy trappings
Of a culture built on consumption.

Throw away your mask,
Don your woodland garb,
Come dance a moonlit dance
Amoungst the trees!
Hear the merry brook,
Singing you her song,
Hear the whisper of the wind in the trees!
Throw away your mask,
Don’t let it make you hide
Throw away your mask
And find yourself outside!

~Kathie Adams Brown (4-20-10)

One Single Impression Prompt 112: Mask

My poem for OSI Prompt 116: Trembling can be seen at Sycamore Canyon, Disaster in the Gulf

The Churches Stood

2010-04-19T16:20:00.000-04:00

Oklahoma City National Memorial 3-19-10 (photo by Gusto!)

The churches stood in golden sunlight

on an ordinary day

and felt the force of anger

tear all those lives away

the steeples pierced the sky

to show the souls the way

to enter heaven's glory

while others had to stay

and weep 1000 tears

while others watched and prayed

for all the families hurt

by the violence of that day

A nation stood united

against that kind of hate

a memorial was built

to commemorate that date

when love was stronger than

the force of such despair

when people came together

to mark what happened there.

~kathie adams brown (6-27-04)

The chairs of the Oklahoma City National Memorial 3-19-10 by Gusto!

(Each chair represents a person who was killed in the bombing.)

The Thrush and I

2010-02-20T12:01:00.001-05:00

American Robin at Cienega Creek Preserve 2-19-10

Photo by Kathiesbirds

Alone in the woodland the thrush and I
Seek refuge
We pause and listen
Waiting for sound
Waiting
To hear the earth move
Amidst white bones
And gold coins
Rattling
And crunching
We breathe one breath
We think
One thought:
Home.

~kathiesbirds (2-20-10)
OSI Prompt: Gold

Yeah, I Blew the Curve

2010-02-01T16:12:00.001-05:00

But since we are reminiscing

And talking about blowing the curve

I can well remember the day I did

And the crash, the smash, the shattered glass

The unconsciousness of it all

The struggle to release myself

The struggle to be free

Before the car blew up

For that’s all I knew from the movies.

I was only just learning to drive

Had my learner’s permit

And the experienced driver sat near the door

And the other young man sat in-between

And fiddled with the radio and fought with me as I

turned the knobs, as I

turned the corner

as the licensed driver

reached across us both

and grabbed the wheel and

turned it!

Turned into a rock wall

That didn’t give an inch

And the other driver of the other car

A 70 year old man

Smashed!

Into us

Smashed!

into his windshield

Smashed!

His face.

We all stumbled out

Into silence.

Dazed silence.

And then, sirens!

Wailing, screaming, and rushing in!

How I clung to the ambulance workers,

How I clung on for dear life!

The ambulance came and whisked me away

To intensive care

With my liver ruptured and bleeding.

Yeah, I blew the curve,

but not without help

and not without consequences

That linger.

~Kathie Adams Brown (2-1-10)

OSI Prompt: Blowing the curve

The Birds of Christmas

2009-12-24T17:49:00.001-05:00

Christmas Cardinal painting 2006

Lo the birds of Christmas

are searching for some seeds

on winter's frosty mornings

so remember nature's needs,

and toss a little fodder

to our feathered friends

in thankfulness for songs they sing

when this long winter ends.

~Kathie Adams Brown (December 9, 2004)

The Colors of Christmas

The Fragile Web

2009-12-15T15:26:00.000-05:00

We are all connected,
I heard the ancients say
In a web of life
That trembles with each breath
A fragile state
For all of us
For if the web
Becomes undone
Then so shall all
Fall.

~Kathie Adams Brown (December 15, 2009)

One Single Impression: Spider's Web

In the Womb of the Word

2009-11-24T20:28:00.001-05:00

Hyper-colored photo by Kathie Brown 11-5-09

In the womb it starts,
Blood pulsing, hear throbbing, bone forming,
Life!
Thoughts forming, song singing, mind boggling
Forces
Creating
Becoming
Believing
Sharp pains,
Struggling,
Rushing gushing
Bounding towards the light
Birthing out the beginning
Beginning at the end
Creative rush
Creative flush
Beginning once again.

~kathie adams brown 11-24-09

Under the Milky Way

2009-11-15T03:02:00.001-05:00

Under the Milky Way I sit
A star bridge arching above me
Before me the flickering flames of a campfire
Smoke thoughts rising to the sky
And before the last ember fades,
Before the last flame has licked
The fragrant wood,
And crumbled into ash,
I capture this warmth inside me,
I capture the silent sky,
I swallow the universe in wonder,
And howl my contentment to the moon,
For I am a wild thing
On this starry, silent night.

~Kathie Adams Brown (11-8-09)

Prompt: reincarnation

Departed

2009-11-10T16:15:00.000-05:00

The Big Lost River near Arco, ID 1987

I never knew when I departed
That I would long for you like this,
That I would awaken in the darkest night
Restless and searching,
And wanting to come home to you.
I did not know your form
Would be imprinted on my brain,
You scent would linger like a kiss
On my memory.

I did not know it would be years
Before I would see you again
And that in seeing you
I would never be able to come back to you
Until my last breath has departed
And I rest in your earth once again.

~Kathie Adams Brown (11-8-09)

OSI Prompt: Departed

A Cloud is an Elusive Thing

2009-10-27T14:30:00.001-04:00

Thunderheads over Sycamore Canyon 10-20-09

A cloud is an elusive thing,
An ephemeral wisp, a temporary ghost,
As it floats across the sky
Changing form as fast as wind can sculpt it.
With unseen hands the master
Carves the soft and tattered edges
While here below on solid ground
I watch the artist work
And as I watch I wonder
About the great blue sky,
And galaxies beyond,
And my small life here,
On this shifting ground.
So which is more ephemeral?
The clouds which tears apart
Only to form once again
or me?
For here I stand this moment
Solid as can be
Never to return,
And even now the answer to this question
Eludes me.

~kathie adams brown (October 20, 2009)

One Single Impression Prompt: Elusive

Locust Birds

2009-10-18T01:06:00.000-04:00

Like an army of locust
the fierce finch flocks descend
devouring greenery as they go
in this dry desert
where no tender shoots are safe
from beaks that gobble,
beaks that grab,
beaks that tear
and swallow.

~kathiesbirds (June 16, 2008)

OSI Prompt: Conquer

Brown Creeper

2009-10-11T23:47:00.001-04:00

Brown Creeper 10-11-09 by Kathiesbirds

graphite and prisma color on paper.

My talisman arrived in autumn
On cryptic wings
Clinging
To the rough bark of a pine
Creeping
Up the solid girth
On tiny feet
With curved beak
Probing
In dark crevices
For that juicy morsel
That food, that sustenance
To carry us through winter
A plain bird
A subtle thing
It brought me life
On cryptic wings.

~Kathie Adams Brown (10-11-09)

OSI Prompt: Talisman

My Chair is My Window: OSI

2009-08-03T15:48:00.000-04:00

photo by Kathie with the Nikon D80

My chair becomes my window
As I relax into a dream
In my secret garden
Where all my thoughts take wing
I fly out thorough this window
To galaxies beyond
I visit many places
I have never been before
I feel the earth beneath me
And a zephyr brush my face
I feel the warmth of sunlight—
Breathe the fragrance of new mown hay
I hear bird song in my ear and
The voice of love calling my name
In my secret garden
As I relax into my chair,
As I relax into a dream.

~Kathie 8-3-09

OSI Prompt: Window

Bloodlines

2009-02-06T17:37:00.000-05:00

Morning shadows fall
on the white stable
of thoroughbreds waiting
for alfalfa
green and fragrant.

I lift the bales
And think of my grandfather
Feeding his cattle
Four decades ago,
And know
That I carry his blood
In my veins.

I hear
the munching,
grinding, contentment
of horses being fed.

I feel
the blood pumping
connection
of labor and sweat,
and providing for
these animals,
this hay.

I toss another flake,
and stand almost alone
in a flurry of floating green.

~Kathie Adams Brown
(September 11, 2000)

Happy Birthday Grandpa! I still miss you.

OSI Prompt 51: Spectral

OSI: A Winter's Day

2008-12-21T15:10:00.001-05:00

King Mountain Winter by Kathie Brown 1999 Acrylic on Canvas

King Mountain, Blue Solstice

Winter blue shadows fall
On golden left over grass
Evergreen ribbons drape mountain shoulders,
While gray clouds train across the valley
Chugging through the pass,
Just another winter’s day in Idaho,
Just another day to be alive
Just another winter of color
Trapped in the snow’s prisms,
In the fractured flakes melting
In the high mountain desert
Of the Pashimeroi Range,
One short day before
Hope returns with the sun.

~Kathie Adams Brown (December 21, 2008)

(Click on the button for more poetry.)

Christmas Nana

2008-12-17T12:32:00.001-05:00

Christmas Mouse 1998 by Kathie Brown Acrylic on posterboard

I love to go to Nana’s house
at happy Christmas time
I love to eat the turkey
And smell the Christmas pine
I love to see her smile
And bustle round the house
Making everything just perfect
For each grandchild and each spouse
And though my Nana’s little,
Only ’bout five foot tall
Her heart is quite enormous
Filled with love for one and all!

~Kathie Adams Brown (1985)

Skywatch Friday: Swainson's Hawk

2008-11-13T16:33:00.001-05:00

Swainson's Hawk, Acrylic on canvas paper 9" x 12" by Kathiesbirds

Blue sky, brisk air,
An autumn gathering of raptors
Over green agricultural fields
Where raptors walk like chickens
On-the-ground,
And fill the hedgerows like blackbirds
With branches sagging from the weight of it all,
And the sky above full of feathered bodies
circling, circling, circling,
All in restless waiting
For the flight south to wintering grounds
There’s safety in numbers
Until you come home
In spring.

~Kathie Adams Brown (11-13-08)

( Click on badge)

Visit my other Skywatch Friday post

Bird on a Wire at Sycamore Canyon.

Halloween Night!

2008-10-31T06:25:00.002-04:00

The spiders come creeping,

the snakes turn around,

the witches are brewing

their brew in the ground,

while pumpkins roll downhill

and goblins cause fright

the children are coming

it's Halloween Night!

~Kathie Adams Brown (1975)

Paralyzed

2008-10-19T22:57:00.001-04:00

If I move through this fluid world
I am caught in a cast iron pose
These rigid arms and legs
A never ending reminder
Of movement.

~Kathie Adams Brown (10-19-08)

One Single Impression Prompt 34: Never Ending

Cast Iron Ballerina Painting Acylic on Canvas by Kathie Adams Brown 2005

OSI: The Harbinger of Night

2008-10-07T22:24:00.002-04:00

Great Horned Owl photo by Kathie Adams Brown 8-8-08

In dusky light I walk

my dog tethered to me

the desert landscape spread before me

like a thorny blanket

when the hooting of an owl

calls to me from the canyon.

Below me in the twilight

with a half moon rising

on silent wings the dark bulk flies

up into desert skies

and lands on a Palo Verde tree

less than fifty feet from me

rotating its horned and feathered head

it locks amber eyes on my frozen form,

while the dog tugs impatiently on the leash.

I stand breathless and silent

with the desert chorus singing

their nighttime lullaby

--whit WHEET! the trasher,

--tink, tink, tink, the black-throated sparrow,

--squeak! squeak! squeak! the Gila woodpecker,

and while the cactus wren cackles and scolds from the cholla cactus,

The owl and I stare each other down

as minutes pass like desert gnats,

until the harbinger of night

lifts off on ponderous and silent wings

and flies away with my breath.

~Kathie Adams Brown (October 7, 2008)

One Single Impression Prompt 32: Serendipity

Eight Belles

2008-10-02T19:45:00.000-04:00

Eight Belles shining in the Kentucky sun,
Eight Belles waiting for a mighty run.

The bell sounded,
the gates flung wide,
Eight bells matched the boys,
stride for stride,
‘till one Big Brown pulled ahead,
--a big brown colt with a big pounding heart.
and Eight Bells on delicate legs
threw her heart after him
threw her heart into the wind,
her long black legs reached for the sky
and as Big Brown crossed the finish line,
her black legs cracked on the sandy earth
where she tried to fly. Her-

--pounding heart,
--beating heart,
--throbbing heart,

couldn’t pulse
those broken legs

on Kentucky Derby day

Eight Belles bleeding in the Kentucky sun,
Eight Belles made her final run.

~Kathie Adams Brown (May 4, 2008)

One Single Impression

Prompt 31: Fleeting

Skywatch Friday: God's Eyes

2008-09-25T23:54:00.001-04:00

Starry Sky painting by Kathiesbirds acrylic on canvas 9-25-08

Is God up there in that starry sky?
Is he gazing down on me?
When I look up in midnight blue
Can I see his eyes
in starry skies?

~Kathiesbirds (July 25, 2008)

To see more views of the Sky visit Skywatch Friday.

Please Visit Sycamore Canyon to see my other Skywatch post Monsoon Night.

To read about what inspired this painting visit A Gentle Morning.

Skywatch Friday: Idaho Autumn

2008-09-18T15:54:00.001-04:00

King Mountain Autumn acrylic on canvas 1999 by Kathiesbirds

One Single Impression: Autumn

In the Big Lost River Valley
a golden mantle is
thrown across the land
with the sweet scent of drying hay,
and damp cottonwood leaves
tossed like coins along dry creek beds,
where soft amber light shimmers
on the rugged shoulders of King Mountain,
Autumn comes to Idaho as a golden event.
~Kathiesbirds (September 18, 2008)

Click on the link to view more Skywatch Friday photos.

Visit Sycamore Canyon to view a my other Skywatch post: Raven Chasing a Redtailed Hawk

Skywatch Friday: The Moon is a Pearl

2008-09-11T17:28:00.000-04:00

Like the inside of an oyster shell
The dark skies open
Revealing the slippery flesh
Of parting clouds
Revealing the pearl
The glowing orb
Luminescent and full
In her monthly glory
One night and day
Before she slowly dissolves
Into darkness
And forms again.
~kathiesbirds ( September 11, 2008)

Visit Skywatch Friday to see more awesome views of our marvelous skies from around the world.

Click on the link to see The Dancing Cloud at Sycamore Canyon.

OSI Prompt 28:Defenses Down

2008-09-07T14:46:00.000-04:00

You caught me with my defenses down and blogged into my life,
We laughed, shared poems, became friends,
I thought we connected
Became kindred spirits—
You spurred me on
To poetry
To creativity
To life
I always hoped I meet you
One day but,
You withdrew your presence,
And refused to speak to me
And I wonder what unknown offense I have committed
To be cast out this way.
The sadness I feel lingers
like a stale odor in my brain--
You caught me with my defenses down,
I will not be caught again.
~Kathiesbirds (September 8, 2008)

Throw Me Into The Fire

2008-09-04T18:46:00.000-04:00

Thunderheads build behind the Santa Rita Mountains

Click to enlarge for a better view

Throw me into the fire
of a boiling monsoon sky,
where thunderheads build
behind dry mountain peaks
to pour down rain
on my parched soul,
throw me into the fire
of that boiling, roiling sky,
where I can feel my heartbeat,
where I can feel my soul stir,
where I can learn to fly--
let it burn away the excess
of a sedentary life
and fill me to overflowing
with passion and desire,
so throw me into the fire
of this consuming sky.

~kathiesbirds (September 4, 2008)

One Single Impression: Spectacle

To view more Skywatch Friday photos click on the button above.
Visit Sycamore Canyon to see my other Skywatch Friday post, Hummingbird Reflections.

Photographer's Note: Photo by Kathiesbirds with the Nikon D80 2008/08/15 19:11:27.9; Lens: VR 70-300mm; F/4.5-5.6 G Focal Length: 170mm; 1/125 sec - F/5

Skywatch Friday: High in the Mountains

2008-08-28T20:40:00.000-04:00

Gardner Canyon, Sonoita, AZ 8-17-08

High in the mountains where I want to be
the morning sunlight falls on me
and casts a softly slanting light
across the meadow after night,
when dew drops twinkle in the day,
the stars of heaven fall this way.
~Kathiesbirds (July 25, 2008)

View my other Skywatch Friday post at Sycamore Canyon.

Please visit Skywatch Friday to view other photos and to submit your own.

The Sky Above Me

2008-08-14T14:01:00.000-04:00

(Rt. 83 Elgin, AZ, 8-3-08 photo by Kathie; click to enlarge, see shooting data below.)

The sky above me vaulted blue
umbrella under which I roam
on this earth—
this temporary home.

~Kathiesbirds (July 25, 2008)

Click on the Button to view other Skywatch photos, with thanks to our hosts, Tom, Sandy, Imac and Klaus!

To view my other Skywatch entry visit Sycamore Canyon.

Shooting Data: Nikon D80

2008/08/03 13:17:41.8

Lens: 18-70mm

F/3.5-4.5 G

Focal Length: 18mm

Digital Vari-Program: Landscape

1/250 sec - F/10

Skywatch Friday: OSI The Folly of a Summer's Sky

2008-08-07T16:47:00.000-04:00

Wilson Lake in Wilton, Maine by Kathie 7-14-08 Nikon D80

We think of sunny summer,
but in Maine it’s endless blue,
with white clouds sailing
on a breath of wind
over silvery lakes
and shadowy ponds,
when winter seems a foolish thing
to think
about.

~kathiesbirds (August 7, 2008)

Shooting Data: Lens: 18-70mm F/3.5-4.5G Focal Length: 18mm/250 sec - F/10

Atmospheric Questions

2008-07-31T18:57:00.001-04:00

(Mt. Fagan Sky July 26, 2008 Acrylic on Canvas by kathiesbirds)

Can I ever grasp this great expanse

this wide vault,

this atmosphere?

I reach to hold it to my breast,

I fling my arms towards emptiness.

Why do I want to gather it,

this wide expanse of openness?

~Kathiesbirds (July 25, 2008)

Click on the button to view more Skywatch Friday photos.

Click on Sycamore Canyon to see my other Skywatch Friday post.

Winter Wind: Epilogue

2008-07-31T07:45:00.001-04:00

Winter Wind blew
through each little crack,
through empty pockets.
Winter Wind blew snow
across the freshly plowed driveway
bringing harsh reality home.
winter wind blew us a-w-a-y- - - - - - -

~kathiesbirds (1997)

Epilogue: With Gus and I both attending college along with our oldest child and three more at home we were not able to buy the Yellow House. We moved out 2 days before Christmas into a rental home where we lived for the next 2 ½ years while we finished school. Money was tight and winter temperatures fell to -35F with wind-chills of -50F, but we survived and graduated from college and moved away from the frozen north. The Yellow House still stands on Rt. 1 in Westfield, though it is no longer yellow and part of the old barn has fallen down. I’m glad I lived there when I did. I hope you enjoyed my memories in art and poetry. There is more to this story and maybe someday I will tell it.

To view all the posts about the Yellow House click on the Yellow House label below or in the sidebar.

Apple Tree

2008-07-30T07:30:00.001-04:00

Autumn swells
your branches full,
red blush jewels
on a green tapestry.
Little monkeys we
cling to branches plucking
sweetness for the winter.

~kathiesbirds (1997)

To view previous posts in this Series click on the links below:

Woodstove

2008-07-29T08:00:00.000-04:00

Snuggling round the hearth,
heaps of blankets, books and kids,
Dog and kitty join us
in a circle of warmth
only a woodstove gives.

To view previous posts in this series click on the links below:

Yellow House post 1

Yellow House post 2

Yellow House post 3

Pine Cone People

2008-07-27T08:30:00.001-04:00

Pine cone people beneath the tree,
Pine cone faces smile up at me,
In this lonely meadow
standing up so tall
beneath your sagging branches
the pine cone people fall.

~Kathiesbirds (July 25, 2008)

Prompt 22: Faces

This is the third in a series of posts about the Yellow House.

Yellow House page 1

Yellow House page 2.

Stars Again

2008-07-26T08:00:00.001-04:00

Stars again! Stars again!
I can see stars again!
No city lights—
just nature’s twinkle,
winkle, crinkle,
sparkling, darkling light!
at night!
Stars!

~kathiesbirds (1997)

Note: This is the second post in a series about the Yellow House in Westfield, Maine.

Skywatch Friday: The Yellow House

2008-07-25T16:25:00.001-04:00

Introduction: Today's post if from a book I made about a short 4 month period that we lived in a little yellow house in Westfield, Maine. We had moved there in 1996 after Gus took a buyout from his company to attend college at the University of Maine in Presque Isle. While we hoped to buy the house and live there forever it was not to be, but the short time we lived there is full of rich memories. This is the first in a series of posts about life in the Yellow House. (All words and images are copyrighted by kathiesbirds 2008)

Dotted Swiss Memories

Sunsets in a kitchen window
washing supper remnants away
while children leap
through rose and gold light
dotted Swiss memories.

Click on the button to view other Skywatch photos.

Go to Sycamore Canyon to see my other Skywatch entry.

Mythology 2000: OSI Prompt 20 Myth

2008-07-13T03:00:00.000-04:00

Mythology 2000
Tinkerbell
had a dizzy spell
and fell,

While Peter Pan
in Neverland
was too busy
to notice.

And who believes
in Fairytales

these days.
They’ve mapped
the human genetic code

you say?
The mysteries are gone,

We’ve become gods,
until we realize
we can’t shut
Pandora’s Box.

~Kathiesbirds (autumn, 2000)

Skywatch Friday: King Mt. Summer's Blush

2008-07-03T18:33:00.001-04:00

(King Mountain Summer in Idaho 1999 acrylic on Canvas by Kathiesbirds)

The setting summer sun
caresses the gentle slopes
of the Lost River Range
King Mountain blushes
behind fragrant stacks of gold--
summer bales of winter sustenance
~Kathiesbirds (July 3, 2008)

Skywatch Friday is hosted by Wiggers World

Click on the link to see a monsoon sky in Sycamore Canyon

Climbing Aster

2008-07-03T03:00:00.000-04:00

The dawn rose
-an aster
with lavender sunrays
surrounding her
golden face.

~Kathiesbirds (July 2, 2008)

This poem was inspired by a photo of a Climbing Astor seen at Virtua Gallery by photographer Klaus Web.

The Old Barn

2008-07-01T20:15:00.000-04:00

(New England Barn in my Memory; graphite on paper scketch 1997 by Kathie)

Through the doorway
of the old red barn
a memory lingers
in the fragrant bales
stacked to the ceiling,
while below in their
stanchions
the pungent odor of
milk and manure
rises from
black and white
cud-chewing contentment
on the hoof.

~Kathiesbirds (June 30, 2008)

My Grandfather

2008-06-30T17:14:00.000-04:00

(Photo by Kathie, June 30, 2008 Nikon D80, sepia tone.)

He could fill a door frame
standing tall with his fedora,
leaning on his cane,
pipe between his mustached lips,
smoke curling around him
in a pungent hug.

I hold the old cane now
in my stucco southwest home
far from the doors of New England
and the good earth that he rests in
next to my nana
his only love.
~Kathiesbirds (June 30, 2008)

Happy Birthday Nana who would be 102 today if she were still alive.

Prompt 18: Doors

Skywatch Friday: Summer Solstice Moon

2008-06-25T19:57:00.001-04:00

(Mt. Fagan with Summer Solstice Moonrise: pastel on paper by kathiesbirds June 2008)

A sliver of shining silver
slips from behind the stones,
the rocky, craggy, mountains,
and throws
silver light beams over the desert,
silver moon rays into the sky,
a glistening,
............glowing,
.....................moon balloon,
in a summer solstice sky.

~Kathiesbirds (June 18, 2008)
Skywatch Friday is hosted by Wigger's World
To view my other Skywatch post visit Sycamore Canyon.

The Silver Song of the Desert: OSI

2008-06-22T20:47:00.000-04:00

The silver song of the desert,
from the black throat of a bird,
a sparrow sitting in sunlight
on an arid desert morn
perched near a cactus thorn
its melody floating around me,
its presence a mystery still,
this silvery voice in the desert
is calling me, calling me,
still.

~Kathiesbirds (June 22, 2008)

Prompt 17: Melody

Best Dressed Flowers In the Garden

2008-06-20T19:39:00.000-04:00

The clematis is a bridal gown,

the spiderwort a hat,

the creeping thyme a chorus

asking of the weed, "what's that?"

~Kathiesbirds (6-20-08)

Once again I was inspired by someone else's blogpost. I wrote this one today after visiting Nature Girl's Blog. To see the photos that inspired this poem, click here.

Skywatch Friday: Shuttered

2008-06-19T20:48:00.000-04:00

(Photo by Gus taken May, 2008 with Nikon D80)

In darkness I peer out

Through the shutters of my mind

To find a world of color

Playing in the sky.

~kathiesbirds (June 19, 2008)

Skywatch Friday is hosted by Wiggers World.

View my other Skywatch photo at Sycamore Canyon.

Purple Martin Home

2008-06-15T15:02:00.000-04:00

Purple Martins and Saguaro photo by Kathie, June 12, 2008

Purple martins fly
wings that slice through azure sky
green saguaro home
~kathie (June 15, 2008)

One Single Impression prompt 16: Transience or Permanence.

Skywatch Friday: Things That Sway

2008-06-12T21:06:00.001-04:00

(Photo by Kathie, June 12, 2008 6:23 p.m. MST)

I love things that sway in the wind;
The flowing grass,
The dancing trees,
The willow boughs,
The bamboo leaves,
All caught in a breeze,
Or windy gale,
Toss and sway
And sigh and shake,
Reflected in an azure lake--
Their fluid motions
Their restless leaves
Reflected in my inner sea.

~kathiesbirds (27 February 2008)

Purple Fountain Grass and Whirling Butterflies (guara).

To see other Skywatch photos please visit Wiggers World.

Skywatch Friday: Idaho, My Love

2008-06-05T20:28:00.003-04:00

King Mountain in Spring painted by Kathiesbirds 3-18-99 Acrylic on Canvas

Idaho, wild Idaho,
I long for you so much!
You are in my heart
You are in my soul,
And I desire to be in you.
What is this hold you have on me?
Why this terrible love?
You are a place, just a place,
On earth.
You draw me as a lover,
With a love I’ve never known before.
Why do I feel this need
To be immersed in You?
I want your mountains surrounding me,
Your aspen trees,
Your golden sunlight.
I want your wild-ness.
I want your rivers pouring over me,
Your wildlife running through my eyes,
I want to see eagles playing in the skies
Once again.
I want the Sandhill Cranes to dance
In pastures near the cattle,
I want to see a pelican
Fly overhead at lunch,
Or Great- Horned Owls perched
On phone poles in the morning
When I am hanging wash out to dry
With potato fields beyond.
I want to see newborn lambs
Gamboling across the landscape,
Or bald-faced calves in spring,
Curled in the pastures
When I am driving into town
On highway 93.
Idaho, my Idaho,
How I love you, love you so,
When will I return my love
To my place of being?

~Kathiesbirds (March 28, 1998, revised June 5, 2008)

To see more Skywatch Friday photos visit Wigger's World.

Turtle Poem

2008-06-04T12:43:00.000-04:00

Simply silly snoring turtles,

sunning on their sacred stones

‘till the turtles tumble into

waiting waters that are home.

~Kathiesbirds (June 4, 2008)

This poem was inspired by this photo posted by Chrisss at Tranquility Cove

And Mom Said We Could!

2008-06-03T19:17:00.000-04:00

I remember a thunder storm

A day when we played in the mud

And Mom said we could!

I remember sliding,

Gliding in

Black sticky ooze,

And laughing, laughing,

All of us laughing,

And Mom said we could!

And my brothers

And sister and I

Were all one

In the fun

Of the sticky, black oozing mud,

And Mom said we could!

~kathiesbirds (12 May 1988)

Click here to view other poems from One Single Impression: Freedom

Skywatch Friday/The Temporary Dog

2008-05-30T10:51:00.000-04:00

(Photo by taken by Kathie May 6, 2008 @ 5:32 p.m. with Nikon D80)

The puff dog raised his cottony head
In skies of azure blue
And barked his vaporous bark to the world
Asking “who?” Asking “who?”
Who stops to look as the clouds float by?
Who see me in the sky?
I’m a temporary dog,
I won’t last long,
Before I bark “Good-bye.”
Will you hear me bark
Will see me float
Away in skies of blue?
Then the wind came along
And he was gone with a song,
The puff dog, ghost dog, Boo!

~Kathiesbirds (May 30, 2008)

To see other Skywatch photos please visit our gracious host Old Wom Tigley at Wigger's World.

Moonlight Princess

2008-05-22T18:13:00.000-04:00

(Painting by Kathie 1999 Acrylic on canvas)

Moonlight Princess

She peeps around the corner as the moon reaches its full height,
A strange tingling now posses her as her eyes drink in the sight,
The bluish glow it beckons her, the field is coaxing sweet,
with a glance to see that she’s alone, she rushes out and greets it.
A magic world it is to her, by virtue of the moon’s transforming power,
Everything glows mysteriously; every leaf, every stone, every flower.
She know with every trembling limb who she is and what she’s here for,
With a leap, a twirl and then a bob, she dances on the grassy floor.
The little princess of the night is calling to the stars
She dances with the wafting clouds, with Venus, Moon, and Mars.
The breeze soon joins the graceful dance, cavorting on the lawn,
It bends the trees and tossed leaves and whispers to a fawn.
The little fawn trembles too, basking in the Moon’s light,
and then as if beyond control its heels kick with delight!
Soon a rabbit joins in frisking; in unity they pirouette,
If the moon stayed up forever, they’d probably be there yet.
But fingers of sunlight soon start reaching
To draw back the curtain of the nighttime sky,
So rabbit, fawn and princess, must bid the moon good-bye.
As each one takes a final leap, a pirouette, plee or bow,
The day bursts full upon them; the moonlight—gone for now.
Yet they will wait most eagerly and mark each day, it’s true,
‘till 28 have come and gone and the Moon is at its full,
Then out in the field the rabbit will come, out of the woods, the fawn,
And out of the house the Moonlight Princess,
All to dance upon the lawn.

~Kathie Adams Brown (November 11, 1984)

Click on the links to see more Skywatch Friday photos hosted by Wiggers World.

Desert Cathedral: Skywatch Friday

2008-05-16T08:20:00.000-04:00

(Photo taken Feb. 4, 2008 by Kathie with a Nikon Coolpix)

Desert Cathedral

A gossamer sky
Filters winter sunlight
Upon singing choirs
In feathered gowns
Who float through
Creosote scented
Spiky cholla cathedrals
The black-throated bell choir
Sends their tinkling sound
Over mesquite, prickly pear,
and hackberry covered slopes
With saguaro sentinels standing guard
over the rocky wash
where bobbers dance
and trill,
Here in the gossamer
Winter light—
music.

~Kathiesibrds (Jan. 1, 2008)

This is my contribution to Skywatch Friday hosted by Wiggers World Be sure to visit for links to other Skywatch photos.