So…Knox turns out to be

40 to 60 percent American Staffordshire Terrier,

26 to 39 percent Neapolitan Mastiff,

and 10-25 percent Bernese Mountain Dog. 

I really have an eye for greatness.

                                                                             JDG

After only twenty-five minutes

of exercise and stretching,

body and mind

are relaxed and at peace.

Who would have thought

it could be that simple?

                                                 JDG

A cup is meant to be both filled and emptied. 

I begin each day with an empty cup.

I fill it with coffee, freshly brewed,

add a dash of cinnamon and some cream,

then take it to my favorite chair.

As I slowly sip, I savor the heat,

the taste, the satisfying smell.

This time of slow absorption

reminds me, like the cup,

I am a vessel meant to be filled,

meant to be emptied.

                                                                     JDG

That small branch,

part of a much larger tree,

catches the light of the afternoon sun,

bends with the weight of a passing squirrel,

shifts ever so slightly, touched by a breeze –

a momentary receiver of whatever comes,

a momentary lender of itself.

                                                                    JDG

Right before the day closed,

the sun emerged

to let us know

although it couldn’t stay,

it would be back.

                                               JDG

Small brown birds gather at the brush pile

in my unmanicured back yard.

Here in this disordered space

they find food, community,

and refuge from soaring hawks

and more persnickity larger birds.

Here in this disordered space

they’re free to nest and sing.

                                                      JDG