Category: midwest

great day for a hike

We moved to our current home in Illinois from Michigan back in 2004, but it’s not the first time we have lived in Illinois. We first arrived in Chicago-land back in 1988. However, it wasn’t until we came back in 2004 that we discovered Matthiessen State Park.

The day started out with the typical refrain of cold, low, gray clouds, but Mr. I-Can’t-Seem-To-Get-The-Weather-Report-Right promised clearing skies and it came to pass that a beautiful, mostly sunny afternoon emerged.

One of the things I love about each of the it-feels-like-hundreds-of-times that I have visited this park is that it is always new. It’s like discovering and exploring for the first time, each time.

And I love the quiet… the sense of calm…

I am glad I made time to reflect… walk… listen to a waterfall, or the water gurgling over rocks and a stubborn oak leaf…

Thanks for stopping by.

snowy spring morning

well snowy spring morning
i wonder did you know
that through the window
of my soul
the snow is falling
soft and still
the birdsong
silent ‘neath the chill

and beauty
hides in the silence
and sadness hides
in the unknown
and hope hides
in the fleeting faith
that rises with
each falling flake of snow
did you know
snowy spring morning

there is something growing
in the waiting
flowers put their hoodies on
and trees are standing
at the ready
oh snowy spring morning
paint the ground
and sparkle the air
i’ll find the beauty
while the birds
remember their songs

and beauty
hides in the silence
and sadness hides
in the unknown
and hope hides
in the fleeting faith
that rises with
each falling flake of snow
did you know
snowy spring morning

mysterious love

uncertainty
disorientation
a gray shadow
blankets the light
confusion
an opaque spirit
descends in my mind
and tries to dislodge
hope from my soul
it nearly succeeds

turn to the left
turn to the right
turn around
move
stay still
speak
remain silent
try
surrender
everything matters
and nothing does
i can’t focus
on the next step
what kind of morning
is this
what kind of dawn
haunts me

i think i’ll wait
i choose to listen
my Maker is near
and He whispers
through the diffused
shadows of my fear
He sings through
the longing in my tears
and in this moment
nothing has changed
the struggle remains
so i yield to this moment
and trust
in His mysterious
love

o sunset sky

o sunset sky
i wonder if you cry
as you say goodbye
to all this day
has left behind
o sunset sky
would you stay with me
and cry
my sunset sky
o sunset sky
what do you see
as darkness falls
around me
this pain and loss
and mystery
i cannot see
what lies before me
o sunset sky
won’t you cry for me
o sunset sky
i know you try
to make smile
all that fire in the sky
it leaps so high
and fills my world
with colors
and beauty
and wonder
and that ache
in my heart
just starts
again
so goodbye
my sunset sky
goodbye

i sang along

i heard some music today
the rhythm section of a little girl
skipping behind her mom

a gentle touch
from a medical sage
as he sang
-  you’re going to be okay -

the pale brown dried hydrangeas
shivering or dancing
to the melody
of this damp winter wind

i heard the horn section
of one member
of the bumper to bumper traffic
play a long steady tone
no doubt the driver
was in the fermata lane
and rules are rules

even the gray sky
somehow drew it’s bow
across the horizon
a deep ostinato
boasting of its power
to tame the light

it’s all music to me
a chaos of simplicity
a pale beauty
a human connection
a reason to dance
when there is no reason
to be found
so

i
sang
along

the sun at matthiessen park

It’s not the cold or the snow that can be difficult in the winter. For me, it’s the lack of sunshine. We seem to have the following four seasons in this part of the Midwest: Cloudy, Spring, Summer and Fall. So, I was so grateful when the clouds took a break and allowed the sun to brighten a recent hike at Matthiessen Park. Hope the sun is shining where you are. Thanks for stopping by.

in the bleak mid-winter

What can I give Him,
Poor as I am? —
If I were a Shepherd
I would bring a lamb;
If I were a Wise Man
I would do my part, —
Yet what I can I give Him, —
Give my heart. 
- Christina Georgina Rossetti

To my WordPress family: Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! May this season of light and joy be filled with peace for you and yours. May your new year be seasoned with adventure, love and contentment.

little frozen stars

snowflakes
like little frozen stars
are dancing around
my backyard
barren branches shiver
beneath winter’s breath
there is a kind of death
that erases memories
of fireflies
and summer rain
but is’t okay
there are frozen stars
dancing around
my backyard
this winter day

cold and wind
sweep the messy fall away
cold stardust blankets the ground
and delicately paints the trees
and help me see
that all this loss
of green and flower
is the rhythm of you and me
for there is power
in resting
waiting
dying
to even beautiful things
that may shackle our souls
and find new life
beneath the barren
new love
beneath the bitterness
new warmth
beneath the cold

let’s dance
like little frozen stars
in my backyard
and remember
that what seems random
when we feel abandoned
when our hearts are unable to fathom
the singing of the birds
we wait
in the in between
and come to the Word
He speaks into our stillness
He speaks into our silence
while little frozen stars
dance in my backyard