One Stitch at a Time

This quilt was made by my wife’s grandmother. She put a lot of love for her craft into each quilt. Back then the quilts were stretched across a quilting rack and stitched by hand. She and her friends would get together and spend time quilting and enjoying each other’s company.  You can see the beauty of the stitches in the floral design. These days quilts are still being made, but many are done on a long arm sewing machine.

One stich at a time

Friends creating a fine quilt

Love in each stitch

Needles pierce through cotton cloth

Winter snow remains outside

 

Photos: Dwight L. Roth

 

Peace of Mind

“What brings you peace of mind and cleanses your spirit?” This was our question for the d’Verse Poets Pub poetics this evening. For me it is not just one particular thing. I love sitting under the trees and watching nature hum all around me. Music soothes my soul, both listening and playing music on my guitar with others. I love going to the Nursing Home each week where I read stories and play music and sing with them. I always come away renewed! But, I have found that posting on my blog each day brings me the most peace of mind. If I have been busy all day, all that mind clutter goes away when I sit in my chair and begin writing a poem and finding a photo or two that I can add to it. Sometimes it is the other way around. If I have no particular inspiration, I look through my photo files and am always able to find inspiration. Connecting with all of you is most rewarding. It is not so much the likes on my posts, but the comments and personal interactions that make what I do here worthwhile. So, for that I say thank you for your support and encouragement.

Sharing thoughts with you
Connecting with such great friends
Brings joy to my soul

Photo: Dwight L. Roth

Join us at:  https://dversepoets.com

 

 

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!

The Edge of Inspiration

Beyond Imagination
I have been pushed and shoved all my life
Thanks to friends who cared…
Seeing more in me than I see in myself
Learning to do more than I could ever imagine
From computers to art // writing memoirs // and poetry
Publishing books on Amazon //and writing a blog…
Things I never imagined ten years ago
Susan // Kym // and Tom
Encouraging // urging // helping me
Opening doors to new worlds of wonder
Imagination that knows no end
Wonderful friends all over the world
Communicating with me every day
Keeping me on the edge of inspiration

Photo: Dwight L. Roth
I am reposting this one again after thinking through my writing process on yesterday’s post.  I am forever thankful for friends, who I mention in my poem, who have urged me to move into the world of writing. Without their encouragement, I would not be writing this blog.
It is such a wonderful thing to be able to learn to know all of you. Your great writing and words of encouragement, given to me in your comments, keep me coming back for more. I have learned so much form all of you at the d’Verse poetry group. I am now writing poetry that I never even heard of two years ago! Thank You All!!

 

Remembering a Life

Today we planted a flowering pear tree in the back yard to remember Ruth’s father. Some dear friends gave us money awhile ago to make the purchase. With spring in the air and temps in the high sixties, it seemed like a good day for this project. We are looking forward to seeing it bloom each spring and thinking of Dad.  It will be a great addition to our yard.

A day to reflect

Memories of dad will blossom

With the warmth of Spring

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Photo: Dwight L. Roth

First Kiss

He was tall with brylcreemed hair
Sixteen // a new driver’s license
She was petite // a spring flower
Fourteen // hormones tingling
Her cute irresistible smile drew him.
In the shadows of the church hallway
A first kiss // never to be forgotten
…Though so long ago

Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, so today De asked us to write a Quadrille of 44 words that included a reference to a kiss. I wrote this one in memory of my first kiss!

Join us at: https://dversepoets.com

Happy New Years 2019

A New Year’s Blessing
May your old year pass with peace and celebration
May you let all your worries remain in 2018
Hold your friends dear to your heart
Let loyalty and love be your coat of arms
Let your grief do its work in your soul
Never forget those who passed on
Keep your family precious and spouse revered
Treat everyone with dignity and respect
May your wishes become goals to attain
With God’s strength work toward that end
May you follow the light of the Spirit in your heart
Walk with God as you would your closest friend
Trust that all things will work out for your good
Be thankful for all of your blessings of life
May you live every day as the “Word made flesh”
May you be a light and a beacon to all
Happy New Year 2019

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Painting: Dwight L. Roth

Old Songs

Last week we got together with some old college friends, and their spouses, from the late 1960s. During those years we sang together in a group we called the Optimists. The Folk Music era was in full swing and the songs of Peter, Paul, and Mary as well as many other musicians influenced our song choices. We rented a house on Lake Wiley and spent four great days together singing and catching up on our lives. It was a wonderful time. The songs and harmonies came back together just like it was yesterday!

Old Songs

Notes cling to the chambers of my brain

Hanging there stretched across my mind

The first three notes…………

Drawing me like a moth to a flame

Snagging me with silky smooth harmonies

Wrapping me tightly in a cocoon of pleasure

Lost in dusty webs of the past fifty years

Sucked in and stored away for evermore

Eight-legged bands are now long gone

Leaving me stuck in the recesses of history

In an egg sac // hatching out tunes of my own

Running here and there stringing new webs

Never forgetting how great it was

To be caught up in the old song’s web

Notes branded on my brain for ever

Creating an identity of who I am today!

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Photo: Dwight L. Roth

Finding Success

Does becoming Miss Home Coming Queen mean you are a success? It is wonderful to be recognized in this way, but there is more to success than a short lived recognition. Success is who you are, not what you have accumulated.

Finding Success
Success comes from within
Not from what we have
The car we drive
The house we live in
The trophies we have won
Success is getting up when you fall
Believing you can continue on
Knowing who you are
And what you can do
Success is loving and being loved
Knowing the value of family
The importance of friends
And that children are an extension of you
Success is giving $12 worth of work
On a job that pays only $6
Success is treating others with respect
Even when you are mistreated
Success is standing up for justice
For those who are being oppressed
Success comes from within
From the core of your being
Success is who you believe you are
And being all you can be

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Photo: Dwight L. Roth

This photo was taken in 1978 when I was teaching elementary school at Inborden School in Halifax County, North Carolina.

Some Endings…

Some endings seem to be more difficult than others…

Pulling on heartstrings trying to sew the broken

Crying tears of sorrow for a love turned cold

Graduation brings a mixed bag of joy and apprehension

Knowing challenges // struggles // and hard work lay in store

On the only path to their growth and success

Friend separation leaves empty space // but never in our heart

True friendship never ends// no matter how far they roam

Reunions always seem like it was only yesterday

 

But // losing a loved one is the most difficult of all endings

A child before parent // an unimaginable ending

A parent who passes early leaves a giant hole in one’s heart

Cruel dementia is very difficult to accept

Living on without memory is an ending none of us desire

Living till we die is what we all hope and pray for

Some endings are more difficult than others

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Photo: Dwight L. Roth

While commenting on Robert Okaji’s post “Forgotten” I wrote the statement in the opening line of this poem. I decided to use it as today’s prompt. Check out his post:

Forgotten