Rain Harvest
Yesterday I had a long list of tasks, most of which involved the computer, a tired body, and a tired mind. I had little motivation to do the things I needed to do. So I did what I often do when I feel this way: I went outside to visit…
Sprouting Seeds
This year my beloved acupuncturist, Dr. Wu, retired. I could sing you love songs about Dr. Wu. He took such good care of me these past 4 1/2 years of long covid. He often gave me extra time and let me sleep on the table (every acupuncture treatment put…
Prayer Flags
I have four children, and much of my weekends have born the imprint of their activities these past twenty years. There have been choir contests, live music gigs, swim meets, kung fu classes, dance recitals, plays, and countless soccer games. Two of my children have played soccer, so I'…
Rendezvous in Aisle Twenty
I've often said that my church is The Church of H.E.B. H.E.B is the main grocery store where I live in Texas, and the grocery store is our unity, where we all come together: old, young, rich, poor; construction workers and bankers; teenagers looking…
Picking Up the Pieces
Once a month I drive fifteen miles to a church hall in a neighboring town, where kind volunteers stack the tables with boxes of jigsaw puzzles. For thirty minutes, people swap puzzles and stories. It's free and regulars know to bring a bag: we're encouraged to…
When You Find a Grocery List in Your Poetry Journal
When people ask me what I do, I tell them I'm a writer. The next question is often about what I write. For many years - knee high in the thick of mothering four children - I chuckled and said, "A lot of grocery and shopping lists.…
On A Day When You Don't Feel Enough
Today's poem is for my young friend Liam. Liam is 19, in his first year of community college, a kindred spirit that I befriended at my neighborhood gym. It's not a traditional gym - it's the rec center of a private high school that…
What Eyes Have Not Seen
This summer brought an unusual gift: a month long, grueling spell of vertigo, when I couldn't close my eyes or sleep because of the intensity of the dizziness, whose severity, peace and blessings be upon it, sent me to a specialist, seeking relief and understanding. A few days…