Saturday, July 30, 2016

Pension

The battle continues. Who was the first woman rector in Chicago? Who was the second? What does it really matter? Except maybe getting the timeline right. Odd. I remember Bp. Montgomery installing me as chaplain for UIC at Church of the Epiphany in 1984. And now there is no Episcopal chaplain at UIC. Nor is there a Church of the Epiphany. Nor am I able to walk without a walker. It is time to apply for my pension. 32 years. It is time.

There is much contention
About
Who was first
Or second
Or third.
I have no idea
Where I fit.
But then
This has always
Been the case.
It is time to claim
My pension.
It is time
To understand
First
Second
And third
Doesn’t matter
At all.

Friday, July 29, 2016

New Yorker

Accessibility. Poetry

I don’t know
Who chooses the poetry
In the New Yorker
Except I do know
It is most often
Inaccessible.
I still read
The cartoons first.
Some of them
Are funny.
Some require living
In New York.

Thursday, July 28, 2016

Blueberries

Sometimes the turtle eats dog food. Still, he always eats blueberries.

The turtle stares
With gimlet eyes
Blueberries
He says
Blueberries
He thinks
Blueberries
He stares
Blueberries
Blueberries
Blueberries
We have learned
To hear turtle
And now
He is asleep.

Sunday, July 24, 2016

Heck of a way

I know I lost weight spending a month in the hospital. I also know people mean well. I'd rather they said Good to see you or Have a seat or even how about lunch?

This was a heck of a way
To diet.
I don’t know
What size to purchase
Any more.
Nor do I know
What looks good
With a walker
And  AFOs
Much less
What size I am.
When people tell me
You’ve lost weight
Do I say
It wasn’t intentional
Or
Thank you
Or
Simply smile
And move on.

Saturday, July 23, 2016

Nuns

Is it sacrilegious to think of nuns changing into their skivvies?

The nuns
As long as I can remember
Have always been
At the farmer’s market
Selling their baked goods.
They wear full grey habits.
Wool.
Yesterday it was
Almost 100 degrees.
They do not appear
To sweat,
Those nuns
In gray wool.
I certainly would.
I still wonder
If they have
Alternate habits
For different seasons
Or if they return home
And drink iced tea
Change into
The nun version
Of skivvies.

Friday, July 22, 2016

Lazarus

Sometimes these stories make no sense.

One healing story
After another
Lazarus
Unbound
Released
From the tomb
His sisters
Still angry
Jesus took so long
In getting there
Dragged his feet
I never did understand
They were all
Good friends
Lazarus
Martha
Mary
Jesus
Some things come
With no good explanation
Like this

Thursday, July 21, 2016

Legion

Life with and without Legion. Life with and without Jesus.

If Jesus was able
To send Legion
Into those pigs
Have them jump
Like so many lemmings
Off the cliff
Why
He could do
Most anything
I tell you.
Some believed
Some didn’t
Some were angry
Some felt sorry
For the pigs
Some lost their livelihood.
But the man
That man
Who lost Legion
As a defining force
That man
Must have spent time
Learning how to be
Without Legion
Learning how to be
With Jesus.

Wednesday, July 20, 2016

So often

If I were preaching these days, this is what I would say...walking up to the pulpit with my walker.

So often
I find myself on that roof
Being lowered down
To Jesus
By friends
By my therapist
By people I never imagined
Could hold me
Even in a crowd.
So often
I realize
There is a hole
In that roof
And I
I am being lowered down
To Jesus.

Monday, July 18, 2016

Ash

Working to focus on saving the ash.

Sometimes
I only see dead trees.
There are a lot
Of dead trees.
We work to save
The ash tree
In our back yard.
We have hired
A company
To treat the ash.
Sometimes
We simply can’t
Go it alone.

Sunday, July 17, 2016

Excursion

We find company everywhere.

Excursions
Everything counts
As an excursion.
In church today
There were three of us
With walkers.
One had a cool blue walker.
I was jealous.
Not that I want
A walker
At all
But blue
Is to be envied.
My church excursion
Came with company.
Now I rest at home.
I wait
For the next excursion.

Friday, July 15, 2016

All our cats have come from unknown sources

Cats often choose their owners. We know this to be true. Our giant gray cat cuddled up to each family member. He gave us no choice whatsoever. The whole shelter staff stood around and cheered that Juneau had finally found a home.

All our cats
Have come from
Unknown sources.
One appeared
On the doorstep.
One came out
From under a bush.
One was part of a litter
Found in the woods.
When we sought a kitten
From the shelter,
They showed us
A giant grey cat
No one would adopt.
We squeezed him
In the cat carrier
And took him home.

Tuesday, July 12, 2016

Discovery

Two desserts

I have discovered
Once again
That we all are different
As much as
We all are the same;
Breathe the same air;
Settle for Brussels sprouts
Maybe broccoli;
Long for dessert
Maybe even
Two desserts
One right after
The other.
We all are different.
We all are the same.
We breathe.
We settle.
We long.
Yes
We long.

Thursday, July 7, 2016

Hissy fits

Turtle hissy fits

We all
Have hissy fits.
Right now
It’s the turtle’s turn.
He is crashing his food plate
Against the glass
Of his tank.
Blueberries are usually
His food of choice
But clearly
Not today.
Today
Blueberries
Offer no satisfaction.
He stares at me
As if I can read
His mind.

Monday, July 4, 2016

Preface

It never occurred to me.

My inbox is full
Every morning.
I sift and delete,
Read and save.
This morning
I was offered
Walt Whitman’s preface
To Leaves of Grass.
It had not occurred to me
There was a preface.
Leaves of Grass
Always stood
On its own.
No.
Preface there is.
There’s always a preface.
Some are worth considering.
Some not.
Still
There’s always a preface.

Sunday, July 3, 2016

On Independence Day

More steps.

On Independence Day
I will strip the sheets
From the hospital bed
In the living room.
The next day
The bed will gone.
I will be on my way
To the next phase
Of physical therapy.
One more stage
Of independence

Saturday, July 2, 2016

Panther

Years ago I dreamed of buying a black panther in the local Ace Hardware. He was on sale. The last one on the shelves. We wrestled him into the car and brought him home. I'm not sure another animal would be "my thing."

I don’t think
We get to choose
Our own spirit animals,
Yet some are still more appealing
Than others.
Years ago I dreamed
A black panther.
My beloved
Loves crows.
James Thurber wrote
about a unicorn
in the garden
He said
A unicorn 
Is a mythical beast
Like a dragon.

Panther

Years ago I dreamed of buying a black panther in the local Ace Hardware. He was on sale. The last one on the shelves. We wrestled him into the car and brought him home. I'm not sure another animal would be "my thing."

I don’t think
We get to choose
Our own spirit animals,
Yet some are still more appealing
Than others.
Years ago I dreamed
A black panther.
My beloved
Loves crows.
James Thurber wrote
about a unicorn
in the garden
He said
A unicorn 
Is a mythical beast
Like a dragon.