Joy

In every life
Teardrops must fall
But joy is the halo
That crowns them all

Janet~

Get-away......

Take me away from the noise of the highway
Away from the well-beaten track
Allow me to wander the courses of nature
With only the wind at my back
Here in the temple of pine tree and hemlock
Time suddenly stands still
Here let me listen…..to nothing but silence
Drifting over the hill
Take me away from the starkness of duty
Bathed in earth’s comfort and calm
For there’s nothing as sacred as God-given beauty
Played out in nature’s palm

Janet~

Lady in Blue.....

The hem of her cloak
Drapes softly across the earth
In rich blue folds

The gleam of her brooch
Draws every eye
To the brilliant jewel of gold

She is most assuredly
The queen of the ball tonight
Spectators of her beauty are we

Speechless, with awe and wonder
We marvel at the sight
As she ravishes us with humility

Janet~

Observations of the Day......

I do not care
For speaking in riddles

We have two choices
Take it or leave it

Poetry, most often seems to be
A sequence of classic confusion

If laughter had a color
It would be lilac and silver

Dreamers and lovers
Are often disappointed

Silence speaks more profoundly
Than a myriad of loose chatter

We gather things
Only to watch them slip away

God’s word is……
An immortal faithful compass

Janet~

Gray.....

...and now the painting is complete

She puts down the brush

and contemplates the colors of the day

in the quiet midnight hush

Maybe tomorrow there will be

A few less shades of gray

Janet~

I looked up to see how far it was to the top

of the hill

I could barely discern the line between snow and sky

I looked around me

nothing but countless shades of gray!

Clarity......

For all the things that life may send
That we can never understand
There are some things so dear and good
That cannot be misunderstood
Warm arms,
I love you, Mom
Supper was great
It's good to be home
Will you read to me?
Can I hug you good-night?
Thank-you for everything
It's gonna be alright
You look nice
In that shade of blue
Thank-you, darling
I love you too

Janet~

Realizations.....

She thought it was sorrow….
A steel blue numbing of the senses…….

She thought it was a raging river
But even rivers freeze in bitter cold…..

She thought it was hope
That small rift in the cloud….

She thought it was something…..
And it was.

Cold.
Bitter.
Truth

Janet~

Winter's Brook......

Its laughter is cold and silent today
The sparkling ripple is frozen and gray
Her palm, a sleek, powdered wild-life highway
Winding through brush and field
Somber its avenue shrouded and still
No magic or music nature’s palace to fill
Frozen in time against its restless will
But soon her passion will yield
To the kiss of the sun and the sigh of the breeze
To the mellowing zephyrs that whisper and tease
Her laughter echoing river and seas
As she flings aside winter’s shield

Janet~

I returned to the brook while skiing today……….
But there was no chatter or greeting so gay
The chilling hand of winters grip
Had stilled the laughter on her lip…………

Paintings.....

Its pristine canvas stretches out
Before my gaze
No markings or splashes
No sad yesterdays
Marring its surface
I wonder, as I contemplate
Color and choices
Who will be in my painting today?
Someone close to me or far away?
Will the palette be pale or of deeper hue?
Will the sky be gray or perfect blue?
And whose hands will help with the design
Will it be His hand painting?
Or will it be mine?
Will this one be a keeper?
One I’ll lovingly store?
Today stretches before me….
My feet touch the floor
As the first dab of color appears…..

Janet~

When you're Four.....

When you are four you are a superstar
Every goal you score is the best by far
‘Cause Grandma and Grandpa told you so
They know everything, you know….
And daddy was smiling and really proud
Mommy was clapping and yelling real loud!
When you are four no dream is too big
And no task is too small
You are king of your hilltop
And ten feet tall
Someday you’re going to be just like Daddy
‘Cause you can be anything you want to be……
When you’re four you don’t compare yourself with the other guy
You’re a winner every single time you try
When you’re four you’re as sweet as sweet can be
And oh, so much bigger than when you were three
Four brings bright sun-drops on the grayest of days
Four chases all unhappy thoughts away
Because when you’re four there’s no reason to be sad
The world’s greatest heroes are mommy and dad
When you’re four you dream about being five
And every day is a good day to be alive
A week is forever and eternity
Is waiting for the bus at half-past three
Four is big enough to go to school
But small enough to just be ‘naturally cool’
When you're four the world is a lovely place
And there's nothing wrong with a dirty face
When you’re four and you’re little brother is one
You get to show him how everything’s done
Four is big but not too big to hug
Four is just right to tuck in nice and snug
I really can’t think of anything more
Beautiful; than being four

Janet~

For Michael.....one of the
sweetest four-year-old's
in the world!!!

A Little Too Little......

A little too little for snakes and ladders
Too little for puzzles too
One is too little for so many things
That ‘one-year-old’ wants to do

A little too little for throwing a ball
A little too little to catch
A little too little for playing games
Like Bingo and Uno and Match

A little too little for coloring books
A little too little to bike
A little too little for helping much
Or to do anything that he’d like

But one is just right for cleaning out drawers
And exploring every nook
One is just right for opening up doors
Or snuggling with a book

One is just right for reaching up high
And ‘discovering’ through ‘uh-oh’ and messes
One is just perfect to swing to the sky
And spoil with a thousand kisses

One is just right to cuddle and hug
Or to play games like peek-a-boo
One is just right for rock-a-bye
Oh, there’s so much that ‘one’ can do

Janet~

Yesterday I was playing ‘catch’ with
The four-year-old that I baby-sit
And one-year-old was seriously frustrated because he couldn’t
Quite maneuver that racquets we were playing with…..
Poor guy, I said to Michael…I think he thinks he’s too little for everything!!!!
I picked him up and cuddled him……
He laid his head on my shoulder……See?
One is NOT too little for everything!