My partner in dine

sent an encouraging note

as I began my

healthy living plan: “What do

we learn from cows and

elephants? You can’t lose weight

by eating greens and walking.”

                                                  JDG

I put out the food,

but nature has the final 

say on who will dine

and when today. Woodpeckers,

squirrels, cardinals, and jays,

juncos, doves, and chickadees

all drop by and enjoy.

~

I am filled with delight

as I sit and watch and wait.

                                                           JDG

Their unexpected act of kindness caught

me by surprise,

lifted my

sinking

heart.

                                                               JDG

Seeking nothing, not

permission or argument,

she simply observes.

Creating will come later.

For now she watches,

open to whatever comes,

knowing something always does.

                                                          JDG

Convinced fine dining

is for them too, these tiny

birds flit and flirt ’til

they spy a tasty morsel

unwary tourists

left behind. Then, zooming in,

they, with gusto, grab a bite.

                                                                     JDG

Storms might be coming

but for now, sun and puffy

white clouds fill the sky.

Bees and butterflies flit from

flower to flower,

deer graze, squirrels scamper, crows

bicker, and I watch and rest.

                                                                                  JDG

When I looked at that

fallen tree in our pristine

pond, I saw only

unwelcome debris, but when

those ducks looked, they saw

a welcoming shelter for

them and their duckling babies.

                                                                         JDG

Sitting in silence

caressing that tree’s rough bark,

I felt as if it

were telling me to stop my

nervous picking, to

let my own rough places be,

that they’re just a part of me.

                                                                        JDG

“Look, Gaba,” she said,

“our first butterfly this year.

I hope she finds things

to her liking and lingers

long enough to bring

more cheer.” Then seeing her light

on a purple bloom,

she smiled, saying, “She’s found

a way to dispel the gloom.”

                                                                                JDG

“How do you like it?”

she asked, referring to her

head shaved nearly bare.

Shuffling through my

Good Granny Guide, I replied,

“It is so cool, it’s

practically air-conditioned.”

She grinned. “You’re warm, but not hot.”

                                                                               JDG