Friday, August 5, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen

August 5th, 2011

Towards the East the hills stand green and comforting,
but from here in the bottom of the valley
they are laced with urban poles and wires.


I turn my eyes to the North where they are still
pristine and untouched
and I am once again delighted.

Monday, August 1, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen
August 1st, 2011


And through my kitchen window
the sun lights a pathway through towering trees
whose branches reach out to touch me, gently,
and I could be lost in the nearness of this urban forest.

Sunday, July 31, 2011

A small stone from the |Similkameen
July 31st, 2011

five a.m. and I open the door to fresh air,
a bowl of red raspberries, nestled in a tray of salad greens,
a bouquet of garden flowers and a fragrant spray of pink sweetpeas.

All say a secret welcome to a friendly neighbourhood 
and a kind, creative neighbour.




Saturday, July 30, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen
July 30th, 2011

Timidly trying out the new home
she spends hours under the covers
at the bottom of THEIR bed...

but then she discovers the garden!



Friday, July 29, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen
July 29th, 2011

Muscles and sinew gnaw at my energy
I shall go out an snip at the roses
and watch for new buds of renewal.

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen
July 26th, 2011

The lavender daisies
have spread themselves indiscriminately.
Underneath lies the Christmas Rose, resting in the shade.

Monday, July 25, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen
July 25th, 2011

The fortress crumbles momentarily
and she cries bitter tears,
but joy is irrepressible.

Sunday, July 24, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen
July 24th, 2011

 the organ sounded,
the people sang,
and the organist at least
felt quite exhilarated with hymns of praise
played at a merry clip.


Saturday, July 23, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen
July 23rd, 2011

I saw the moving van
and knocked on her door
to tell her what joy her lovely little garden has brought me.

Some nice bit of friendship passed between us
as she moves out,
and I move in.


Friday, July 22, 2011

Small Stones from the Similkameen
July 22nd, 2011


My pretty blue 'witch's' globe
hangs in the doorway of the computer room.
I take it down,
wondering if the enchantment will disappear


Thursday, July 21, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen
July 21st, 2011


She is small, and kind and dear to my heart
and she comes bearing gifts.
Two glowing gems.....
Strawberry jam for breakfast!



Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Small stones from the Similkameen

Wednesday, July 20th, 2011


A flock of pigeons
wheels and turns and wheels again
Transient diamonds, catching the sunlight in flight.

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen

The pale pink lily stretches up through the climbing rose
reaching, reaching
for sunlight and warmth.

Monday, July 18, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen
Monday, July 18th

a small sip of orange brandy,
its amber sweetness swirling in the glass
makes getting supper a little giddy, totally relaxing.


Sunday, July 17, 2011

A fairly small stone from the Similkameen
July 17th, 2011



I stride through the jungle,
machete in hand, preparing
to log the delphinium stalks.

Tender new shoots push through the rich earth
promising an October display.
Who will cut them back next year?

Saturday, July 16, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen
July 16th 2011

The days grow short and I grow giddy.
I watch the practical, the treasured and the frivolous
disappear into boxes - duly marked.
Will they surprise me when they once more appear?




the cat sleeps atop a lidded Mexican basket, full of straw hats, - his and hers.
Oblivious......

Friday, July 15, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen
July 15th, 2011

The pages are brittle and faded.
I pack once again my mother's petit point graphs
and from the walls the pictures she stitched......
forever treasured.










Thursday, July 14, 2011

Small stones from the Similkameen
Thursday, July 14th

The phone man cometh
and once again I am servant
to its shrill summons

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen
July 13th, 2011

This early hour is dedicated
to snipping faded roses,
regretting yet their numbered days

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen
July 12th, 2011

a mild day -
gentle showers
and a rippled pudding sky

Monday, July 11, 2011

Another small stone from the Similkameen
July 11th, 2011



one lone red poppy
rises from the gravelly road
bravely claiming her place in the sun

Sunday, July 10, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen
July 10th



I turn the last page,
read the last word, - 
close my eyes and sigh,
a thoroughly delectable book

Saturday, July 9, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen



The first cherries....
sweet and firm and
luscious in their rich red ripeness

Should we wonder at the early morning birdsong?

painting by Brian Smith

Friday, July 8, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen
Friday, the 8th of July

As the sun rises
the long shadows gather -
a morning breeze stirs the flowers,
sways the tender young willows

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Another small stone from the Similkameen

I lean in close to inhale the fragrance of the lily.
The golden pollen brushes against me
and I shimmer - in patches.

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen

Waiting for the sun to rise
the horses' tails twitch
through the windows of their shelter.
It is the time of the Mosquito

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen
July 5th, 2011

I see the grass, sere and crisp,
and the roses, drooping their thirsty leaves.
My heart responds....

Monday, July 4, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen
July 4th, 2011

The first flush of roses fades
while the lilies open white waxen petals
behind my back

Sunday, July 3, 2011

Similkameen Stones.

A very small stone to describe my present state of acceptance

Whistlling in the dark
I find the path
to contentment

Saturday, July 2, 2011

Another small stone from the Similkameen

Small round bales,
green cored and golden rimmed.
Circles of sunlight
in a freshly mown field.

Friday, July 1, 2011

A River of Stones


A small stone for the 1st of July, - cool in my pocket and polished idly between my thumb and forefinger.

Turned upside down
and inside out -
the winds of change blow fresh
and promising.

Saturday, May 28, 2011

A small stone from the Similkameen

May 28th, 2011

angry words
grieving hearts
assuaged with love

Wednesday, May 25, 2011


Having received this award from Libby, at by The Wobbly Dum Dum Tree
I am feeling pretty chuffed, despite not knowing quite how to
go about doing the things that are now required of me....

Well, I think the rules are that you must write seven  interesting
(or not so interesting) facts about yourself,
and then choose four blogs to which you must pass on this Versatile Blogger Award.

Here are the facts, - just the facts, Ma'am.

I am ancient, and have been married to the same man for sixty-six years, - clickety ckick!

Time passes quickly when I am in the garden, mucking about.

Also at the computer, - doing the same thing.

Now that life is not so hectic I play the piano every day, which always
includes a little Scott Joplin for my husband.

I am a weaver with a warped loom, waiting for a weft, and I have not yet faced
the reality that weaving probably requires more energy than I have now, and my
stash of wool and silk and linens is never going to get used up!

I treasure a little solitude now and then.

And even more I am grateful for still being curious and aware.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hard to choose only four blogs that deserve an award for being versatile.......

1.   The Homestone who blogs on the many and varied flora and fauna you meet up with living in the 
midst of a meadow in the Cariboo region of B.C.

2.  Gourmet Gardening Girls whose writer has a zillion tips on gardening for the novice
and the expert.

3.  Life as I Know it which makes me feel young again and brings back precious
memories of having a houseful of children,  with all the fun and frustration and love
associated with this period of life.

4.  From the Back Pasture chosen with an ulterior motive, hoping that
it will inspire the writer to tell more of his wonderful tales.

Versatility -
the spawning of
a curious mind.



Thursday, May 12, 2011

A snall stone
May 12th, 2011















Fragrant apple blossoms;
sweetly reminiscent of
romance and a wedding day

Monday, May 9, 2011

The Olalla


A River Stone
May 9th, 2011




The virginal Olalla
picks its way across the hills,
slips down the talus slide
into the valley below.

Saturday, May 7, 2011

Time, you old gypsy man

A river stone
May 7th, 2011

The hands approach twelve.
Press harder to distill
the last of beauty.
a River Stone















the Elephant's Ear
wears pink blossoms
tucked discreetly

Friday, April 22, 2011

A River Stone
April 22nd, 2011

Early morning and the air is cool.
Down the hill the apricot
.... a froth of blossom

Friday, April 15, 2011

Compost

Rich, black and crumbly,
paradise
 for lovely fat pink worms

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Thursday, April 14th
A small stone

A meadowlark,
invisible to searching eyes
sings paeans to the morning.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Slow Spring

The leisure with which
the rich red peony stubs
emerge from slumber

and the slow ballet of leaves
opening in tiny increments
to their glorious greenness

Monday, April 11, 2011

Monday, April 11th, 2011

Tiny new leaves
add a verdant shimmer
to the curly willow.

Sunday, April 10, 2011

Sunday, April 10th, 2011

In the pasture
thirty three robins
hop, stop, cock an ear...
listening for worms.