Monday, September 27, 2021

Nashota












Nashota 

Beauty that once ran free
lifeless and cold 
in the autumn morning chill
stunned by the unexpected loss

To see hopes and dreams
without any breath
like an icy plunge
shocks the system

Still expect to see
you in your place…

in the herd…

in the rhythm…
 
of the in and out parade to the pastures…

Instead, a bare spot
in our field near a tree
where you were
laid to rest

That's what processing grief
looks like today

Poem 21-270y
#highplainspoet
#westernnebraskathoughtsandlife
#horses
#grief

Nashota passed away sometime between Friday night and Saturday morning. Stunned to find her already gone in the morning. We buried her yesterday, Sunday, in the northwest field about 20 yards northeast of the turtle tree. It is where she once ran free among the herd. She was with us for 17 years.





Wednesday, September 22, 2021

Skipping Rocks










Skipping Rocks

On this last day of August
a brume hangs in the morning air

one close to the ground
a gray mist that floats like a willow-0-wisp

A lot like my thoughts
that skip about like a rock
side arm thrown to skip across the water
finally losing momentum, sinking out of sight

I pick up another one and toss it
are there enough rocks on this sand bar
to toss all of my cares into the water one by one
where they tumble against each other in the current
until they are polished smooth

Maybe... 

It would be better if
I wrote the name on each rock:

fear of…
anxious about…
worried about…
reconciliation with…
connection with…
past sins…
family fractures…
covid stress…
my own immaturity…
failures as a father…
failures as a husband…
failures as a son…
missed opportunities…

a belly dump full of regret

Poem 21-243y 
Image taken in the Snowy Range by author (c).

Tuesday, September 21, 2021

Home

Home

A warm meal
A warm conversation
A warm heart
A warm blanket

Soft cat snuggles
Wet dog nose bumps
A mother's supporting comfort
A father's tight embrace

A familiar bed
A full refrigerator
Pile of shoes at the door
Togetherness once more

Poem 21-065z
#highplainspoet
#westernnebraskathoughtsandlife


Monday, September 20, 2021

September


Morning light of late summer
softly filters through their tales and manes
a glow radiates in morning gloam
until the sun fully breaks above the horizon

Gloam fades and softness lifts
as if I've woke from a dream
perhaps this was a taste of Eden
as continue my walk talking with You

Poem 21-252A
#highplainstpoet
#westernnebraskathoughtsandlife


Sunday, September 19, 2021

Gift of Another Day

Eyes open from rest
letting soft light of predawn in
like the blinds that allow
cracks of light to form shapes of what’s around me
 
The in-between of morning
like a ship passing from
one current to the next
catching a new wave of life from God
 
The gift of another day
to be human and walk
in communion with God
as originally intended
 
I am not alone
He walks beside me
He knows me and
most wonderfully of all
I know Him
 
Dwell in that place of being known
allow His presence to engulf me
healing and restoration
just flow in being with Him

Poem-202A
#highplainspoet, #westernnebraskathoughtsandlife

Saturday, September 18, 2021





In the stillness I wait for You
    once I feared You wouldn’t come
    and now I know You’ve never left
 
You are like my skin I wear around
    impossible to remove
    wrapped tightly within and about me
 
I remember how I used to panic like
    a young child when I lost a sense of You
  now I know Your presence is within me
 
I didn’t know that Your Spirit dwells deep within me
    that all I have to do is turn and look
    and there You are in our sacred place


Poem 21-202B Untitled
Instagram @highplainspoet