Sometimes things seem so dark and deep and dreary. But wait…
Little girls with braided hair,
Little boys with holes in the knees of their jeans.
The drumming of a grouse at dusk,
Cardinals in fresh-fallen snow.
Fresh caught “Brookies” roasted on a wood fire,
A ring-neck on a glowing Dakota Prairie.
An old married couple walking arm in arm,
Victorian women in high collars with parasols.
The roar of surf on a wind-tested beach,
The distant bark of an unseen sea lion.
A “Sailors Warning” early in the morning,
The smell of a dew-soaked golf course.
The call of a loon on a moon-glittered lake,
An old dog wanting his ears scratched.
My mother’s hand lightly touching the back of my head,
My child’s belly-laugh.
Warm bread just out of the oven,
Opening a fresh can of coffee.
Ripe peaches just off the tree,
Cottonwoods clapping in the wind.
The smell of fresh mint tailings,
Driving a motorcycle in the dark.
Sleeping beside my wife,
The first ten seconds on waking in the morning.
When I remember God gave me these things; now I don’t feel quite so bad.
Little girls with braided hair,
Little boys with holes in the knees of their jeans.
The drumming of a grouse at dusk,
Cardinals in fresh-fallen snow.
Fresh caught “Brookies” roasted on a wood fire,
A ring-neck on a glowing Dakota Prairie.
An old married couple walking arm in arm,
Victorian women in high collars with parasols.
The roar of surf on a wind-tested beach,
The distant bark of an unseen sea lion.
A “Sailors Warning” early in the morning,
The smell of a dew-soaked golf course.
The call of a loon on a moon-glittered lake,
An old dog wanting his ears scratched.
My mother’s hand lightly touching the back of my head,
My child’s belly-laugh.
Warm bread just out of the oven,
Opening a fresh can of coffee.
Ripe peaches just off the tree,
Cottonwoods clapping in the wind.
The smell of fresh mint tailings,
Driving a motorcycle in the dark.
Sleeping beside my wife,
The first ten seconds on waking in the morning.
When I remember God gave me these things; now I don’t feel quite so bad.