Daddy-long-legs

Every time I walk into the dark bathroom at the office,

I worry that I'm going to be attacked by a spider,

Daddy-long-legs is going to be waiting by the light switch

to jump on my hand and bite me when

I touch the wall trying to find it.

To my relief, he is still over in the corner

in his web, and hasn't moved at all.

I really should sweep him away, but

I like the idea that he might be eating other bugs.

Uh-oh, now there are two spiders. Maybe he's a she.

by:  Paula Dean Nevison

Annoying Bug Turned Lady

A bug flew by

the corner of my eye.

It made me blink. I flipped my hair

in hopes that it would disappear.

A ladybug lit upon my chest.

It quietly crawled across my breast.

I slowly placed my hand in front of it.

Up on my finger, then away she flit.

What began as a trial

left me with a smile.

Though I was in a hurry

she was a pause to my flurry.

By: Paula Dean Nevison

What are you actually doing?

“Passion isn't something that lives way up in the sky, in abstract dreams and hopes. It lives at ground level, in the specific details of what you're actually doing every day.”

Marcus Buckingham

In Awe of Clouds

Clouds in the distance

growing up from the ground,

mountainous stalagmites

like white eruption columns

over a plinian volcanic eruption.

Cumulonimbus clouds?

Are we driving into a storm?

Or cumulus congestus clouds?

I didn't study weather.

I guess we'll find out when we get there.

by:  Paula Dean Nevison

Airplane

way up high,

dark night

firefly.

by:  Paula Dean Nevison

Little Fish

Little fish swimming around this tank,

do they know they are safe

from predators? Are they afraid?

Is this a race?

Are they concerned

around the next corner that they turn

there will be another fish

waiting to make them a dish?

By:  Paula Dean Nevison

Robins

Sprint a few steps.

A froze pose.

Stand erect, peck.

Sprint again.

A crook'd look.

A brief stay,

and fly away.

Am I watching them,

or are they watching me?

By:  Paula Dean Nevison

Wake Up Call

Repeating shrill noise

“Is that a bird or a squeak?”

Eyes roll, “It's a tweet.”

By:  Paula Dean Nevison

toddler's attraction

to grandma's trepidation

– the winding staircase

by:  Paula Dean Neviosn

A Box of Boxes

I have a box of boxes, like those Russian nesting dolls.

Open one and find another.

They get played with

by my two year old granddaughter.

I put some trinkets in the smallest box.

She loves to open them up, and spread all across the floor,

to find the little prizes,

for her, which are in store.

She lines the curios up in a straight line.

I try to organize by color or by size.

She wants them how she put them,

to move them was unwise.

Sometimes she makes a box tower,

but never puts them back together.

Since she has so much fun disassembling,

consolidating boxes is my enjoyed endeavor.

By:  Paula Dean Nevison

Walking with my granddaughter, 2 years old.

She points out the palm tree I showed her last time we walked.

She remembered what she was told.

I don't think that we forget things when we get old.

I think we stop listening.

We can't remember something we didn't ever know.

By:  Paula Dean Nevison

Saved Old Toys

My boys'

old toys,

Batman,

Spiderman,

dinosaurs,

Star Wars,

Matchbox cars,

G. I. Joes,

small Legos,

Ninja Turtles,

books, blocks,

one lost sock.

She's two.

They're new.

Fun play

all day.

By:  Paula Dean Nevison

A Box of Old Barbies

My Barbies have been in a box for a very long time.

I didn't share them with my little sister.

My daughters were not allowed to play.

I finally have seen the light,

and so will they today.

I'm opening the box

to let my granddaughter play.

What good are Barbies in a box?

They should be naked on the floor.

To redress them is not a chore.

Little fingers should comb their hair,

and drag them with her everywhere.

By:  Paula Dean Nevison

My Laundry Routine

Laundry is an all day Saturday thing.

During the school year,

the uniforms must be washed during the week.

I get up early and sort the clothes

into multiple piles according to their colors.

Laundry is an all day Saturday thing.

In the summer, laundry is once a week.

However, there is more laundry to do

during the school year.

Tuesday nights and Thursday nights,

khaki pants and light blue school shirts,

the uniforms must be washed during the week.

By:  Paula Dean Nevison

Hats Off to My Daughter

My daughter thinks she's fat, but

because she's a few inches taller,

even though she weighs more than me,

she is one size smaller.

One size is not enough for her.

She wants to be at least two.

Probably ten pounds

is all she'll need to loose.

She told me what she wants to eat

for lunch while she's at school.

We also discussed breakfast.

Some protein is my rule.

She's wants to walk each day

when she gets off the bus.

She knows eating less will help,

but exercise is a must.

I don't think she needs to loose

any weight at all.

She is perfect as she is,

size eight at six feet tall.

But as long as she eats healthy foods,

and is drinking lots of water,

if she wants to walk the crazy dog,

then hats off to my daughter.

By:  Paula Dean Nevison

Seagull Cinephiles

The flock swoops down and around

scanning the crowd and parking lot ground

for bits of discarded popcorn and treats.

After their circling completes, they perch again,

and wait for when the next crowd leaves.

Seagulls line the top edge of our cinema.

A special adaptation of a lower leg claw

enables them to sit and roost on high ledges

without being blown off. They wait

for litterbugs to provide for their fledges.

They are clever. They learn and remember.

They are carnivores, and scavengers,

opportunistic highly adaptable feeders.

They are our garbage men with wings

waiting for edibles somebody flings.

Their practice of kleptoparasitism

works both with whales and human beings.

They thrive by the sea, and in the city.

But are these cinephile city birds,

or just junk food addict converts? 

By:  Paula Dean Nevison

Heron

A heron on the deck

watching me watching it.

Keeping his distance,

yet trying not to be too far away.

Send the kids in for some bread.

I see him nod his head.

By:  Paula Dean Nevison

Levi Weaver

Sung poetry to pretty music.

Talented artist.

Awesome concert in Mobile, AL!

http://leviweaver.com/tour/

School Uniforms

Get up in the morning and you know what to wear.

Just throw it on and go.

Speaking as a mom of four children

(two girls and two boys),

I like school uniforms.

No more

“I don't have anything to wear!” or

“How come you didn't wash my....”

No more

buying specific requested clothes

that when worn the very first time to school

received a disparaging look, or bad review,

and now can't ever be worn again.

Individuality does not depend on clothes.

I like school uniforms.

I only buy two per child,

and wash them twice a week,

Tuesday and Thursday night.

The one worn on Friday

gets washed with the Saturday loads.

It's not complicated, or expensive.

It's saves a lot of grief.

I like school uniforms.