tender encounter

trusting, trusted

  because if i fear betrayal, i cannot

  allow myself to be vulnerable

quiet

  because noise and foolishness detract

  from me, and even more from you

at peace

  because that blessed state only comes

  when i am still enough to listen deeply

hopeful

  because whatever action that ensues

  will – i hope – nurture all involved

fulfilling

  as i am grateful tenderness has been

  with young bobcat newly on his own

  as he stopped to look, acknowledging

            me without fear

  with the run-away patch of daisies

  in my yard as i walked away leaving

  all to the new owners and they bent

            with the wind, in promise

            to be themselves in gift

with the rocky cliff at my back

as i came to realize we are made

            of much the same elements

messy birds

messy birds, flinging birdseed

over the deck floor from the translucent

suction-cupped feeder on my window

i sweep and try to gather up the bits

between the metal ridges, sighing,

but not regretting the glorious spread

of their wings as they land

on the narrow ledge to dip and pick

my privilege to watch them ungrateful

but happy to feed amid all our man-

made changes to their natural world

serious waiting

haiku

osprey pair guarding

female stretches slender wing

male returns with food

dave

 a giving person

tall, masculine but warm

thoughtful and caring about kids

how they feel, how they grow

to see the good in life

and learn to laugh in love and faith

drizzle shower

gentle drops, arriving individually

one-by-one, welcome

dot-dot-dotting the windshield

until my car picked up speed

down our steep Ihrig Road

splats now, group onslaught

across the width of the window

warranting wipers turned on

at least on delay

Stringtown Road asphalt blackened

nursery plants perking

maple leaves less dusty

soil between vast rows richer brown

mama osprey straddling her chicks

in the nest to feed them

as though providing shelter

as well as sustenance

waiting to recover

a gentle day, not too hot, not too cold

enough sun to nurture the weeds

and the flowers, though they grow

more slowly and needing more care

i grit my teeth wanting to tend

the blooming iris and mow the too-

tall grass but i need to allow

myself to heal

i have experience in jumping

back into activity too soon

and long prolonging recovery

balance and poise

are not easy to achieve