How did you get your name,
what lies beyond your flame
of colors bright and true
that tells the story of you?
Splash of green and vibrant red
sunset colors dance across earth’s grassy bed,
lit from within you glow,
and brighten wherever you grow.
Photo by: Rob Vander Meer
I come from a
mixed marriage,
a brown mom,
a whiter than white dad.
We never thought
we were different
until we went to school,
me whiter than white,
my older brother
browner than brown
in a most amazing and beautiful way.
We never learned
Mom’s mother tongue,
I wish we had.
Spanish is a lovely language,
filled with nuance
and passion
and an element of story
rich in days gone by
and hope for better tomorrows.
Laughter and tears,
one friend to another
we bonded in love
and blossomed
in the garden of life.
I miss you, heart sister.
Thanks for the memories
In Memory of Kathy Allen
Unless otherwise indicated, all content on this site is created by me. I appreciate likes, shares, and comments.
No resolutions for 2023. If the past three years have taught us anything, it’s that nothing is certain. The joy of today can be quashed in a heartbeat by unanticipated, sometimes horrific reality. No, I have not abandoned my faith and Pollyanna approach to life; like you, I’ve just seen one reality-check after another in these days of Covid, inflation, RSV, flu, insane politics, wars everywhere, travel meltdowns, homelessness in ever-increasing numbers, devastating natural disasters… GASP! GASP! GASP!
What we have also seen is the generosity of one human toward another. Strength beyond imagining in people who lost homes and livelihood to fires and flood and war and more, people who, despite their own challenges, stepped in to help neighbors. We are not past the impact of devastation. Therein lies a whole other hill to climb and hopefully overcome. In the case of the Calf Canyon/Hermit’s Peak fire and subsequent flood, will insurance provide the means by which loss can be recovered? How or will FEMA help or hinder? What resources are available to get reliable answers?
The onslaught of lawyers promising the moon is mind-boggling! I’m not sure lawyers are the answer. Here is the link to FEMA if you don’t already have it: https://www.fema.gov/disaster/current/hermits-peak.
Click below to open a two-page brochure with helpful information. The timeline extends into April 2023.
Below is my end-of-the-year poem. It is intended to be hopeful and maybe a wee bit helpful as we head into 2023. And really, when you think about it, January 1 is just another day. Be at peace with yourself and others, day by day.
NEW YEAR’S EVE 2022
There is reality in today,
hope in tomorrow.
Lean into the promise,
rest in the certainty
we live one day at a time
as best we can.
Let that be enough.
Some days will be wonderful,
some make us wonder –
how will I survive and thrive?
May the darkness of doubt
flee before the rising sun of hope
always on the horizon.
Unless otherwise indicated, all content on this site is created by me. I appreciate likes, shares, and comments.
Blue is the color
of sadness.
When the world seems
gilded with
a happy golden glow,
some grieve
others founder
on the shoals of loneliness.
Tragedy does not
take a holiday.
Take heart,
there is hope.
Someone cares.
That is the story
of the manger.
Unless otherwise indicated, all content on this site is created by me. I appreciate likes, shares, and comments.
Brown and gold,
orange and yellow,
signs of fall,
oh, so mellow.
In the pot
beside the door,
petunias flutter
a magenta roar.
With gladsome flaring
these floral sisters
accent with daring
whimseys of change.
Unless otherwise indicated, all content on this site is created by me. I appreciate likes, shares, and comments.
Time,
we believe
we have so much
when in truth
time spools out
like thread
on a spindle
weaving together
with other threads
creating a tapestry.
Your thread,
my thread,
can break
at any time.
I pray to consider carefully
the choices I make,
the actions I take
so the thread
from my spool
adds goodness to
the tapestry of life
before it breaks.
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
Unless otherwise indicated, all content on this site is created by me. I appreciate likes, shares, and comments.
Someone with knowledge
could save this wreck of a tree,
planted back when water
seemed limitless
and rain fell
with some regularity.
This old Russian Olive
remains stubbornly productive,
giving off leaves and shoots and
and anemic branches.
Still, it is beautiful
in the way resilient
things are.
Defiant, the tree
makes its imprint on Father sky,
an ‘I’m not done yet’ statement,
that encourages me
to say the same.
Life is a quilt,
one created over time,
one square, one stitch
placed just so
over weeks,
months, decades.
Sometimes the stitches
knot up, tangled
in unexpected
life events:
death of a love one,
divorce,
too much of this
too little of that.
And then
it smooths out
when new bonds
are made,
babies are born,
life goes on.
The quilt spreads,
covering the span of life,
bringing comfort
and protection.
The quilt of life,
the connectedness
that bridges divides.
Check the BOOKS tab to find out more about my work. Follow me at www.vandermeerbooks.com, https://www.facebook.com/vandermeerbooks, Amazon Author Central. I’m also a member of the Las Vegas Literary Salon, a group committed to sharing the work of local writers. Follow LVLS at lvnmlitsalon.org. Thanks for reading, commenting on, and sharing this post.
The winds and snow of Winter
invite us to cozy down,
take comfort from those around us
in our home and in our town.
Spring’s gay bright blossoms
give us cause to laugh and sing,
as we watch for early robins
and hear the messages they bring.
Summer opens wide its
sunny arms enticing us to play,
kick the ball and swim the lake,
and make the most of every day.
Autumn whispers a sleepy song
of falling leaves and wind all around.
It’s time to rest, they say,
let peace and gentleness abound.
Check the BOOKS tab to find out more about my work. Follow me at www.vandermeerbooks.com, https://www.facebook.com/vandermeerbooks, Amazon Author Central. I’m also a member of the Las Vegas Literary Salon, a group committed to sharing the work of local writers. Follow LVLS at lvnmlitsalon.org. Thanks for reading, commenting on, and sharing this post.
Sharon Vander Meer 
