Picture Window

If I knew how, I'd paint the skyin watercolors, a hundred shades of grayclouds with treetops in the foreground,a bird or two flying toward the horizon. Eventually, I'd need a mat and frame,a wall to hang the picture, coordinatingdrapes and a suitable shade of eggshellpaint, a house to hold it all inside. copyright 2005 Ann …

Chincoteague Watercolor

Great blue heron stands in still water peers past reflection foraging for fish. Indistinct clouds beyond bare trees; amber swamp grass stands at attention, all reflected in water. The only motion, ripples where a yellow leg descended before we arrived. He will pose for hours, this great blue heron, until dinner swims by— then he …

Cherry Tree in April

Dark bark striated trunk branches threaded with telephone wire. Red-and-green buds swell, open into pink blossoms. Thousands of powder puffs erupt like popcorn. Stark sticks vanish in a cotton candy cloud.

Jigsaw Puzzle

Time is an attic full of curious shapes preserved until the moving van returns. Then I must choose again what I will keep and what to leave behind. This cardboard box contains the meaning of my life so far collected thoughtfully against the time I might detect a trend from yesterdays. Before I throw it …

Moon Day in Winter

The tide came in so fast, whole years vanished— a blur of projects and relationships swept away. The everlasting beach retains uniform ripples, brain waves in sand. Think of February days as present time, a gift of snow-white hours, unfettered moments. Welcome the suspect pause as growing space; the body in transformation wins its birthright. …