This is my latest project done during the few warm days of winter. It is the painting of a farm near Singers Glen, Virginia. During college dating years, we enjoyed some beautiful days there up under the oak tree on the hill. We even took our engagement photo next to that tree! I sent it to my niece, whose grandparents lived there.
Today at d’Verse, Lisa asked us to consider Edges or Fringes in our poetry. Edges give an insite that goes beyond words into the life of the poet revealing what is beyond the words. I decided to use edges as the way a persons words speak beyond what they are saying.
Licking the mixing bowl when my mom baked cakes was so much fun. The mixer was set up on the kitchen table. I pulled out a chair and climbed up on it, sitting on my knees, and watched the spinning bowl. The rich chocolate batter flowed smoothly through the beaters as the bowl rotated hypnotically round and round. She used a wooden handled rubber spatula to clean the crumbs of mix off the outer edges of the bowl.
When all was blended, she poured the mix into a 9 x 12 glass cake pan. Now it was my turn. She loosened the beaters and gave them to me one at a time to lick off. It was wonderful to run my tongue up and down each of the tine, getting chocolate from ear to ear.
Then it was time for the bowl. She left little streaks of chocolate decorating the inside of the bowl. I licked both sides of the spatula; then used it to scrape out every bit of chocolate batter that I could get. It was a wonderful time to bake with mom when I was six!
Waiting anxiously
Chocolate lava oozes through
Mixing bowl is mine
Photo: Family Album – the house where I was born
Today at d’Verse, Lillian asked us to take time to reflect and take note of memories from our childhood that are not from photos or family stories. We are to write a Haibun sharing what we conjured up from the depths!
A few years ago I painted this waterfall. It started out from a completely different perspective. It was originally a painting of Looking Glass Falls in the Pisgah National Forest, NC. I had it sitting upside down in my garage. When I looked at it, I loved the way the perspective of the overhanging rocks changed as the painting rotated. I decided to turn it sideways and paint the waterfall flowing from the opposite direction.
The bottom painting was the original and the top painting is the redo. I added in more rocks and extended the waterfall to the bottom. I like the way it turned out. If you rotate the bottom painting you can see how the perspective changes.
Believing in that unbelievable Spirit of all Creation
Experiencing grace and comfort in not knowing
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In this winter of freezing joints and pushing buds
I defy the waiting cold earth with warm sunshine
I write my simple poems from inspired words unknown
As night closes in, each new day dawns
“I am the bud and the blossom, I am the late-falling leaf” – from The Paradox by Paul Dunbar
Photo: Dwight L. Roth
Today at d’Verse, Laura asked us to consider writing from the perspective of paradox. She gave us some lines from different poems to choose from for inspiration. I chose the one from Paul Dunbar’s, The Paradox.
Today at d’Verse, De asked us to make a quadrille of exactly 44 word using the word go! What came to mind immediately was a term I heard very often when I was a boy. It was the term, … on the go. These days we are not on the go as much as we used to be. I can’t wait to be on the go again!