Recliner (not)

My recliner
Reclines no more
It gave up its name
About five years ago
My beloved is sure
He can fix it
So far
No dice.
I have waited
To no avail.
Now I shop
It has taken me
Long enough.

Walker plus preaching

This Sunday
I will preach sitting
On my walker.
This way
People will know
It is possible,
Since this Sunday
Is about
Temptations
It is tempting
To pretend I can stand
And preach
For three services
I can't
No
I can't
Oh,
It is  so tempting

Sleep study

They will study
My sleep.
Determine what
Is required.
Right now everone
Is out to lunch
As if
The whole office
Celebrates Lent
At once
The answering service
Is more than happy
To tell me
To call back
At one.

Today began

Today began
Without ashes.
I eat scrambled eggs
And toast
And salad
For supper.
I know
It is Ash Wednesday
But I still
Celebrate
Yesterday.
I avoid meat.
But not the meal.
I remember
It is Ash Wednesday
Those I see
Bear crosses enough
For me.

Fluff

This morning came
A piece of fluff.
The gifts continue.
Yesterday I was offered
An orange.
Food comes mostly
From India.
Fluff was from the former
Over the road
Truck driver.
The fluff is in a pocket
In my purse.
It will probably stay there.
I did not keep the orange.
The fluff
Yes.

Cat on the keyboard

Cat on the keyboard.
She has no idea
What will be produced
Next.
Cat on the keyboard
xxxxx
pppppp
Now she settles in
For a nap.



































































Cat on the keyboard.
She has no idea
What will be produced
Next.
Cat on the keyboard
xxxxx
pppppp
Now she settles in
For a nap.

Mornings

As I sit in the office
Under the altar
On Tuesdays
I see light
I hear children.
My office mates
Won't see clients
In the morning.
That leaves all mornings
For me.
They don't know
What they are missing
Me?
I cherish the children
The wheels on the bus
Go round and round
Jesus loves me
This I know.
They don't know
What they miss.

One clear weekend

One clear weekend.
My dear one
Is off
In Florida.

One clear weekend.
Me and the cat
Sleep in
And out
And in again.

One clear weekend.
Now I write.
I wonder what
Will come
For the first Sunday
In Lent?
Surely
Something
Will come.
This is not
The first time
I have been here.

One clear weekend,

Every meal is Communion

Every meal is Communion
I learn this
As I sit with friends
Over coffee
Over sweet rolls
It doesn'r have to be
Extensive
Just a bite
Just a sip
Just a word
Every meal is Communion
And then
We are fed.

We women

We come in waves
We women
First a drop of water
Then more drops
Until no one notices
We were
Never there.
We come in waves
We women
Then an ocean
Of course
We have always
Been here
Always
Always
Always
Waves on the ocean
We women.

Saturday is a day to begin again

Last night
I lay in bed
Perused the list
In my head
For the morning.
What should I do
No
What must I do
No
What do I really really want
To do
In the light of morning
After
I share yogurt
With the cat
After
I make coffee.
Then I think
It's Saturday
After all
It will then be time
To begin again.

Cyril and Methodius

In church
Saints Cyril and Methodius
Replace the mythical Valentine
The one who runs
With unicorns
Imaginary hearts
On their horns.
He is so much more
Whimsical
Than the brothers
Who founded
Old Church Slavonic
The language
So few speak.

One more stumble

One more stumble
Yet here I am
Still upright
I can teach
The best of them
The worst of them
How to rise up.
Here we are
Holding each other up
Kin.
Kin.
Kin.
One more stumble
Yet here we are.
Upright.

When things malfunction

When things malfunction
There may be mechanical reasons
Or not
Sometimes
It's easily resolvable
All it takes
Is a trip
To the Apple store
Sometimes not.

Purple hat

When grief takes your hand
Puts a warm purple hat
On your head
Warm purple scarf
Around your neck
Makes sure you don't
Slip and fall
Because of course
Grief
Has assured
Your boots
Have grips
And grief
Has also assured
You have warm purple gloves
So your fingers
Don't
Get
Cold.