Faster Than Lightyears-2

What is faster than the speed of light?
186,000 miles per second;
Nothing in this physical realm;
But, there is another paradigm;
Traveling faster than light.
It is the mind /spirit within
Taking us places in an instant;
Virtual reality may just be the thing…
Just like Dr. Who or Beam me up Scotty.
Imagine the top of a mountain
A rocky flowing mountain stream
The smile of a baby
A vision of your parent who has passed on.
The mind is a wonderful entity
Transporting us to the depths of the sea
To the outer limits of the universe
To see love in an instant
To touch the mind of God
A prayer // a touch of the divine.
Just imagine a heaven beyond description
Or, the pain of a hell already experienced.
The spirit takes us inward to see who we are;
To remember our childhood vivid and clear
Just like it was yesterday;
Time flashes before our eyes, they say
All in an instant…
All beyond lightyears;
All beyond anything we have yet to imagine
The mind is instant gratification
… or torment!

Photos: Dwight L. Roth

Heat Wave

Temperatures rising

Europe is having a heat wave

Looking for relief

Cows and people love water

Cooling off under shade trees

Swim as ships pass by

Skinny-dipping man chillin’

Right next to our ship!

Photos: Dwight L. Roth

Our prompt from Lillian today at d’Verse was temperature! It is getting hot, hot, hot, this summer! When we were on our trip up the Rhine, temperatures were in the mid 90s F. It was still a very enjoyable trip. We stayed in the shade as much as possible. All along the river people were camping and swimming finding relief from the heat.

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Bees & Butterflies of Summer

Butterflies and bees are back again, enjoying all my colorful zinnias. Even the humming bird could not resist. It is wonderful to see them flitting from flower to flower, not worried in the least that I am standing among them taking their photos.

Flower magnets draw

Summer bees and butterflies

Beauty on beauty

 

 

Photos: Dwight L. Roth

 

 

Shedding Religion… Finding God

The older I get the simpler life becomes
I feel sort of like a tree shedding it bark
End of life // is not too far in the future;
makes me stop and think…
“What is really important and true?”
The older I get
the more focused faith becomes;
Moving beyond religious trappings
guilt, fear, and control;
(Knowing those
were nailed to the cross for me.)
Understanding God’s grace in my life
brings me peace;
Knowing I am blessed
to have lived this long
in good health.
I let go of all those things
I once felt obligated to do;
Understanding that the metaphors,
taken so literally by some,
Are there to guide me along the way…
not to prove right or wrong.
I let go of “streets paved with gold”
and “mansions over the hilltop…”
knowing God is Spirit;
No need there
of physical things
we hold so dear.
I believe the image of God
is not flesh and blood
nor what I put on or take off,
but rather an attitude of spirit
that is loving and compassionate.
I came to the realization
that all those prayers I prayed
demanding results
never got past the ceiling.
I realize prayer is meant
to change me // not them
Prayer brings me closer to God,
as I focus on my needs
and the needs of others.
Infomercial religion has no appeal to me
…nor or to God…
There is no place for peddling the gospel
for personal gain…
nor to exert control over the faithful.
Hamster cage religion
leaves me frustrated
and going in circles;
Faith and action bring a feeling
of authenticity and connection.
Church should be uplifting…
an encouraging fellowship
full of good news
connecting us with God
showing us how to love as Jesus loved.
To me the Bible is my guide …
not my God…
words of truth to live by.

Photo:  Dwight L. Roth

Cicada’s Last Song

I found this cicada on the driveway yesterday! He was dead as a doornail. After being in the ground for seventeen years, all the work of singing to find a mate must have been too much for him. He died in the prime of his life! Must have been a wild night!
Bursting into light
Everyone heard him singing
She loved his sweet song
The honeymoon didn’t last
Found him feet up on the drive
_
Photo: Dwight L. Roth
Frank Tassone asked us to write a Haikai poem about the cicada. I decided to write a ranga, which usually has a tongue in cheek sense of humor.
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Signs the Vacation is Over

Kids are a handful

Can’t wait to get home again

Luggage stacked // waiting

Hurry up and wait // so tired

We’ll take the Easy Jet home

Photos: Dwight L. Roth

Locks

Traveling up the Rhine River, we passed through several locks, where the ship enters and is raised to a higher level. We went through most of them at night, but on this evening we came to a lock just before sunset. It was an interesting experience to see the water filling the lock and watch us rise. The opposite doors slowly opened and we moved on up the river just as the sun was setting.  It reminded me of life.

Rocks in our life stream…

Pause // close the door behind you

Let good friends lift you;

Move to a higher level

Let negative pain behind.

Summer sun drops low…

Enjoy the evening orange hues

Tomorrow // new day

Photos: Dwight L. Roth

Posted on https://dversepoets.com open link night!

Living Gold

Gold finches return

Gold come in different forms

Sunshine in feathers

Photos: Dwight L. Roth

 

Confluence

She grew up in the bush of Alberta
I grew up in the sticks of Pennsylvania
With a very unlikely chance of ever meeting;
But, we merged at a confluence of lives;
Education in Virginia brought us together.
Moved to North Carolina to create a new life…
Flowing through time // working // raising children
Traveling back and forth like an ebb and flow;
Visiting our families separated by time and space.
All this the result of an educational confluence
*
He grew up in a small village in Barbados
She grew up poor nearby… washing clothes on a washboard
They moved to London // then to New York City.
He lost his sight later in life due to diabetes
She lost sight in one eye as well
Now we and they live down the street from each other
Where another confluence of lives and friendship emerged
The girl from Alberta // the boy from Pennsylvania
The girl from Barbados // the boy from Barbados
*
What are the odds of this unlikely friendship…
After fifty years of ebb and flow?
I now teach him guitar lessons each week;
Along with the young boy next door…
Whose mother is from Puerto Rico.
At age seventy-two we both have much to gain
In this rhythm we call life.

Photos: Dwight L. Roth

Amaya, at d’Verse asked us to think about the ebb and flow of the earth as a living thing. The people and organisms are constantly flowing from one place to another. The migrants on our southern boarder are an example of this. Most of us in the US have families that came here from somewhere else. Today, I looked at my life over the years, and the places where the flow has come together in the most unlikely confluences.

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Dutch Ingenuity

We were told trees are not planted on the dikes at Kinderjik. The reason is because if storms come through and blows them over it would tear up the dikes. There are a few willow trees that grow close to the windmills. They are used to grow saplings year after year for the Miller to use in various situations. The fence you see above is made of woven willow saplings. Reeds grow all along the dikes and are also harvested and dried. They are use for weaving baskets. Reed roots also help stabilize the dikes. They are places for ducks and birds to live and nest.

Reeds and willow sticks

Harvested every summer

Stacked and dried in sun

Builds fences, gates, and baskets

Dutch ingenuity shows

Reeds grow all along the dikes at Kinderjik and are dried for use

Willow sticks and reeds are stacked to dry for future use

Goat pen gate and feeding trough made from willow saplings

You can see how the saplings are trimmed off this willow stump

One of very few trees seen on the dikes of Kinderjik.

Photos from Kinderjik, Netherlands: Dwight L. Roth