halloween

Lucky Pumpkin

Girl in black with cat, pumpkin, and glowing moonDuring a lovely visit with family this weekend, I had a chance to draw with my granddaughter. Usually she does her own artwork, but this time she dictated what I should draw for her, and then she added the pumpkin lines. Sweet, no? I love a gentle, bit-by-bit collaboration.

Weekends make me feel lucky. Time with family does, too. Writing has its challenges, but it usually allows me a healthy balance of work and life. When I dream, drive, chat with people I care about, take walks, do puzzles, and… Continue reading →

Misty, Windy, Gloomy

Misty, windy, gloomy autumn
has arrived. The outdoor palette
has witched over from green to reds,
browns, and ephemeral oranges.

When the sky darkens and the sun
goes down, I wonder if this is
the last time I’ll see daylight, if
the world will founder in the night
and take us all down with it, like
a doomed Titanic, like Pompeii
daring its friend Vesuvius.

But they are only rogue children
at the door, disguised and eager,
satisfied for the instant by
another candy bar, a spare,
clinking coin in the dragon hoard.

Happy Halloween!

The Witch of Blackbird Pond w/ gord and chocolatesHow soon does one begin eating candy on Halloween? Do we wait until after breakfast? We all know the candy’s in the kitchen, ready to go in a bowl later tonight. Just sitting there. In nice foil wrappers. Chocolate and peanut-buttery goodness.

We get a modest number of Trick-or-Treaters here in our neighborhood. It’s not like the 300+ people my sister in Tulsa gets on her doorstep every year, but we get enough to notice. I have a partly gnawed pumpkin (thanks, squirrel) to carve later, and a couple of… Continue reading →