birds in flight

 stubby little bodies

dark against the misted sky

wings laboring from each shoulder

while gulls glide behind, then pass them

sharp-beaked and slender

parting more than fighting

the dense air with long wings

lifting gracefully at elbow

                        mjNordgren  1/18/2023  Blue House

tangled roots

 untangle the roots

of the blackberry vines

and find interminable

inter-relationships

too many to allow

for annihilation

untangle the roots

of human civilization

and find it is the inter-relationships

that lend us strength

against annihilation

taken but unsaved

albums of photos of the children

grinning, growing, going their own way

even a few of the grands posing

for the camera

even when it’s out of film

but electronic has taken over

and images are piled in my phone

and moldering in my computer

while, digitally ignorant,

i’ve no idea how to organize or save

when white is all you see

 when white is all you see

it could be purity

or snow

or fog

or simply that you’re lost

within yourself

without the darkness

that terrifies

it could be

time to reflect

on what matters best

to pledge to orient

to something larger than yourself

that may know more

poem only template (Copy) (Copy)

awesome chandelier

 wondering why i didn’t buy

the Venetian glass chandelier

that so gave me awe and raw desire

first, with failing ears,

i did not hear the offer to include

my long-stemmed glasses free

second, i could not get three

life-long concern always to treat

my three kids as close to equally

as humanly possible, how could i

have only one such treasure

in my home that might cause hurt

between them? their love for each other

is more valuable to me than all

the ‘boughten’ things I could

ever purchase

Sistine

 the Sistine chapel is lined with pews

overwhelmed, we sit

struggling to breathe

look down to pray for strength

to lift our heads to gape, to scan

to try to take in rich colors, human

forms, human motives and actions

divine presence watching with dismay

our petty hubris, undeserving

of the Lord of all life’s

reaching out

dream as warning?

 dream scenes unsettle

so haunt our awakening

fearful, we wonder

vulnerable hearing

 i am so open when i listen

my being seeps in between

the words, hears, and is changed

at times that is all that is needed

for the speaker hears self  and knows

from within who is and what must be

others wallow in the unjust, the pain

is for spreading in guise of compassion

i cannot listen – i turn away to heal

kah’s birthday dawn

 glorious oranges, deep pinks

hovered over by purple clouds

today’s sunrise is the strongest

of the year thus far

and beyond my poor ability to paint

golden sol shouting happy birthday

without a word – only being

january, too, will pass

after seven and still pre-dawn

january whispers and howls

its own dark way

but days will grow shorter

frail green stalks will lift

from under soil to begin again

the cycles of determined life

that sustain us without praise

first of the year sunrise

 pale orange and muted gold

streak and tinge aqua morning

as purple-blue storm clouds

loom over eastern hills

and silhouetted Mt. Hood

noisy, but still unnoticed

 fireworks, noise, splendor

but the new year

like progress itself

slips in so quietly

it is barely noticed

bit by bit, task by task

until we are startled

to see what change has happened

while we busy

doing something else

                        mjNordgren  1/1/2023  N

asset among the ruins

Italians living among old, ancient

and modern gaining perspective

of ancestors who struggled

triumphed and failed

lived lives of human mortals

knowing the world that was

and not to take themselves as unique

or more seriously than they are worth           

mjNordgren  12/20/2022  Splendid Venice Hotel

Napoli

view from high up narrow

twisted streets to encompass

the entire bay with the castle

in the middle of the sea

marina for yachts and, beyond,

berthed cruise liners and freights

of enormous size

and across the waters, Mt. Vesuvius

“our father, our protector

and our killer”

The Vatican’s summer palace

summer palace, guest house behind

Italian brick wall – opulent, as befits

the greatest landowner and receiver

of gifts to honor deity

one elected after another and another

for centuries and still grand in power

and influence as supreme for millions

ceilings arching to sixty meters and more

painted, arched, frescoed, gilded

long corridors extended, side-roomed

elegantly lined with exquisite statues

and floored with patterned, ancient marble

                        mjNordgren  12/17/2022  Rome

landing in Italy

setting down out of the clouds

we had our first glimpse

of the sea edge of Italy’s knee

fields of intermingled oblongs

of field, a few guarded by hedges

and December-green trees

and thick-walled, multi-story

farmhouses picturesque as antique

oil paintings anticipating our adventure in Rome

share and share never alike

how do i share feelings

that touch me most

when i’d need also to share

the deep impressions

prejudices and nuances

that have tempered me

all my life?

or is there a basic being

we all share

however individually?

valley cumulus

 clouds trapped between the hills

create fog in the valleys

but whisper peace to those

who look over from above

but fear to tread

coping

courage under pain

calm while acknowledging fear

willingness to take one day

at a time in order to heal