Slick-eared,
she went ungathered,
missed the party,
missed the branding
ropes and vaccinations—
they wear the same look.
Not wild-eyed, but
about half-guilty,
half-sad they didn’t
RSVP. Still a chance
she’ll make the cowherd
like her mother.
Posted in Photographs, Poems 2015, Ranch Journal
Tagged branding, Calves, cows, Paregien Ranch, photographs, poetry
Oxalis pes-caprae – March 1, 2015
Non-native invasive,
clusters of yellow spill down
draws along the road.
Posted in Haiku 2015, Photographs, Ranch Journal
Tagged Bermuda Buttercup, Dry Creek, haiku, Invasive, Non-native, Oxalis pes-caprae, photographs, poetry, weather, wildflowers
Posted in Haiku 2015, Photographs, Poems 2015, Ranch Journal
Tagged death, Drought, Dry Creek, haiku, photographs, poetry, rain, resurrection, weather, weekly-photo-challenge, wildflowers, wildlife
Perhaps man has a hundred senses, and when he dies
only the five senses that we know perish with him,
and the other ninety-five remain alive.
– Anton Chekhov (“The Cherry Orchard”)
The past walks here, all the dead
horses and livestock men grazing
a hundred and fifty springs—
all the promises and passion spilled
upon this wild mat of grass and flowers,
naked lovers idly pinching petals
along the creek for centuries
within the mottled shade
these same trees have cast, yet see
to keep alive. We have had
our moments here, left ourselves
so wholly that we rise and rest
among them, add our song
to the canyon, our cries to the sky
to forever make our home.
Posted in Photographs, Poems 2015
Tagged "The Cherry Orchard", Anton Chekhov, Baby Blue Eyes, Dry Creek, photographs, poetry, rain, senses, weather, White-Veined Mallow, wildflowers
Crossing into spring
to move the low cattle up
to let the grass grow.
Posted in Haiku 2015, Photographs
Tagged Calves, Cowgirls, cows, Drought, Dry Creek, flower-friday, haiku, photographs, poetry, rain, water, weather, wildflowers
On the low, rocky ridge,
a Roadrunner moans for a mate
in declining octaves—first awake
February mornings, ever hopeful
for a better day of circumnavigating
barn and garden. Then returns
to hear his song carry to the creek
that has found the river now
for the first time in years, tying
dry ground, this canyon together—
breathing easier, whole again,
it spreads coolly through us
as Wood Ducks skip upstream
to feed beneath the canopies
of old oaks and sycamores.
We have learned the call,
draw him closer with an answer
only more rain can bring.
Posted in Photographs, Poems 2015, Ranch Journal
Tagged birds, Drought, Dry Creek, garden, photographs, poetry, rain, roadrunner, water, weather, wildlife, Wood Ducks
Nemophila menziesii – February, 24, 2015
Delicate patches
along the creek, they flourish—
mother’s favorite.
Posted in Haiku 2015, Photographs, Ranch Journal
Tagged Baby Blue Eyes, Drought, Dry Creek, haiku, photographs, poetry, rain, weather, wildflowers
Easter 2013
I made a joke of it:
attending funerals
as the price of survival—
saying goodbye, adios
as their souls ascended
to meet eternity, look
down occasionally
on our plight
of being human
and whisper in our ears.
With no wants,
they must envy
the depth of our passion
and its sensitive
entanglements, our pride
erected and dedicated
for their inspection.
We are never alone.
Posted in Photographs, Poems 2015, Ranch Journal
Tagged death, Dry Creek, funerals, photographs, poetry, rain, rainbow, saying goodbye, water, weather, weekly-photo-challenge
Whitetip Clover (Trifolium variegatum) – March 24, 2013
In the dark I hear the heartbeat
of another world on this planet
the newscasts miss, we overlook
amid conflicting calculations
with new angles on the numbers
to chart a course to reverse them—
eyes spinning within a slot machine.
Light applause on the roof
answers with one more encore
wrenched from early morning’s
black sky, each green blade,
thick as dog hair in these hills
puddled with brightly colored petals
already reaching for first light.
In the dark I hear the heartbeat
of wet ground growing stronger,
inhale its sweet breath
all-around me releasing life.
Posted in Photographs, Poems 2015
Tagged Drought, Dry Creek, grass, photographs, poetry, rain, water, weather, weekly-photo-challenge, Whitetip Clover, wildflowers
Posted in Haiku 2015, Photographs, Poems 2015
Tagged California, Drought, haiku, Hay, photographs, poetry, rain, weather, weekly-photo-challenge
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