Monday Memories: Across the Street

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My retirement years usually produce a smile

But some days sink my spirits deep, by miles

 

My childhood sweetheart and lovely bride

Now rests with God, absent from my side

 

I stay occupied with my yard each morn

Discovering pleasure from nature’s form

 

 

There is a fine lady across the street

She emerges looking nice and sweet

 

She stays active around her place

Her yard definitely fits her tastes

 

The grass is mowed and trimmed

I wonder how she stays so thin

 

 

There seems, between us

A subliminal connection

Inviting her for coffee

Is my dreamy confession

 

 

Her petunias appear superior to mine

       Perhaps I’ll ask for her secret, in time       

 

She smiles when my puppy is outside to play

I wonder what her plans will be for this day

 

I imagine what she might think about me

Watching me hang a bird feeder in a tree

 

 

There seems, between us

A subliminal connection

Inviting her for coffee

Is my dreamy confession

 

 

We both come from the same generation

Her beauty creates a wonderful sensation

 

I’m thinking of walking across the street

Meeting this fine lady would be a treat

 

She steps back inside from the dry, summer heat

Perhaps tomorrow morning, we can finally meet

 

My Grandfather lost his childhood sweetheart and bride, but believe it or not, he found love again . . . across the street!

Educator’s Prayer

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Lord, my God, hear this prayer

Bless the students in my care

 

Together, we’ll face each day

Overcoming times of gray

 

Bring patience to this classroom

Allow these young minds to bloom

 

Create a safe learning zone

God with us, never alone

 

There may be days not at school

Find ways to make learning cool

 

Cover colleagues with your love

Devotion, to be proud of

 

Send families gifts of grace

May we all stand and embrace

 

Loving each child in my care

Walk together in prayer

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It seems there are nearly infinite challenges to educating our youth (both in schools and universities).  My own daily prayers include significant time for teachers, students, and families during these challenging times.  I especially reach out to my former colleagues who are still teaching as well as two of my daughters who teach.  I may be retired from the classroom, but my heart still misses all whom I served and worked with.

What’s for Breakfast?

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Growing up with a band of brothers, there was a common refrain at my childhood home, “What’s for breakfast?”

However, in order to answer this question, one must return to dinner the night before.

Our mother, in her desire to provide our growing, young bodies with nutrition, decided to try a new vegetable for dinner.  Do diced beets from a can catch your fancy?

Being used to green beans, peas, and corn, my brothers and I looked at the beets with their strange color and unappetizing smell, and we knew these little morsels would taste just awful. 

All of us went on strike at dinnertime . . . refusing to eat any of the beets.

Our father wasn’t a happy camper with our decision.  In fact, he became quite animated that we should all try a sample at dinner.  Yet, we refused to budge.

Finally, our enlightened father drew a line in the sand (or on the table), “If you don’t try these beets tonight, you can have them for breakfast in the morning.”

Morning arrived, and instead of our usual Cream of Wheat or Quaker Oatmeal, our breakfast menu consisted of those horrible red beet squares.  My brothers and I held fast—NO BEETS!

Our mother was paying close attention to her sons.  Never again did she include beets with a meal.

To this day, I still won’t eat beets, no matter how they are prepared.  I think my brothers probably feel the same way.  Do you have a least favorite vegetable?

Cookies, Books, and Coffee (Haiku Series #93)

Ain’t Fun

Bag of Oreos

Milk missing in the ice box—

Now singing the blues!

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Say What?

I’ve read some good books

Me as well . . . a plethora—

Never read that one

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Oh No!

Need to hurry home

Checking out at the market—

Forgetting coffee!

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Headlines Share Goodness

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Comet Neowise visible in nighttime sky

Brightness adds wonder with this fly by

 

Book lover yearns for a single, big library room

Books scattered throughout a house consumed

 

War veteran’s birthday reaches milestone of five score

Celebrating with drive-by parade, lasting love adores

 

David Lee Roth allows his artwork to do all the talking

Van Halen singer creates vibrant drawings, all rocking

 

Backyard farming brings garden-variety experiment

Mix of triumphs and failures sparks life’s merriment

 

Michigan man creates million dollar treasure quest

Buried jewelry, precious metals, antiques—no jest!

 

Teachers making investment in beneficial skills

Determined to make remote learning fit the bill

 

Old hardware stockpile offers newest treasures

Ghosts of hardware past make lasting pleasures

 

Hosting backyard movies invites welcome distraction

Adding drive-in movies as summer’s main attraction

 

Family should earn a doctorate for raising four boys

Each becomes a surgeon, filled with talented poise

 

Pandemic increases customer demand for reading material

Shoppers buying books and paperbacks along with cereal

 

Probe, rover, and drone plan to scrutinize planet Mars

Called Hope, Perseverance, Ingenuity—heavenly stars

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Life Lessons (Elfchen Series #25)

Life Rewards

Character

Built slowly

Over one’s lifetime

Integrity becomes a habit

Precious

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Making It 

Life

Trekking uphill

Reaching its summit

Fulfilling journey never ends

Perseverance

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Starting Over

Discipline

Sometimes lacking

Daily excuses strike

Replace with fresh renewal

Determination

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The German-inspired poetry style of Elfchen (or Elevenie) contains five lines of poetic verse, usually without the use of rhyming verses.  A total of 11 words are used with a sequence of one, two, three, and four words before ending with a single word in the final verse.

Right Field

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The right fielder just happens to be the newest boy in the neighborhood.  His family makes their new home down on Lexington Drive, not far from a park with a baseball diamond.

A group of boys organize pick-up baseball games every morning during the summer at the park’s diamond.  The right fielder shows up, eager to play, but he is the final player picked for one of the teams. 

Few of the other boys put much faith in the smallish right fielder’s short stature.  His glove is well-worn as the seasoned leather molds around his small hand, and his tattered jeans feature a gash at the knee which provides for some extra ventilation.  He wears a faded cap with the Brooklyn Dodgers “B” logo still showing.

On most pick-up baseball teams, whoever plays right field is usually one of its weaker players with not much of a glove, little speed, and a dreadfully weak throwing arm.  Willing to play right field serves as a consolation prize for being picked last.

The right fielder humbly accepts his position.  He is hungry to play ball, and he just wants to fit in with the other boys.

He enjoys a decent game at the plate with a couple of solid hits.  His teammates begin to take notice of his skills.  The right fielder has yet to see a ball hit his way.

The score remains tied with two outs now in the bottom of the final inning.  A runner stands in position to score from second base as he waits for a much needed hit to bring home the winning run.

With the crack of the bat, the runner is on a dead sprint to third base on his way to home plate.  The ball has been hit like a shot into right field.  The right fielder makes a quick jump on the sharp hit, fields the ball cleanly, and sets up his feet for a throw to the catcher.

The runner is rounding third base, and the field is buzzing with excitement.  The catcher positions himself just in front of home plate as he prepares to receive the right fielder’s throw.

With a hop and a step, the right fielder uncorks a frozen rope of a throw.  It carries low toward the waiting catcher.  The runner looks to be a dead duck.  The throw arrives at home plate well ahead of the runner.

The catcher flinches as the ball skips off of the turf in front of the plate.  With a perfect bounce up, the ball arrives well ahead of the runner.  Sadly, the catcher misjudges the throw, and it bounds over his glove into his body. 

Runner safe!  Game over!

With the game over, the rest of the boys discover they have a pretty darn good right fielder.  They’ve never seen a throw quite like his.