it grows less

For some time I thought there was time
and that there would always be time
for what I had a mind to do
and what I could imagine
going back to and finding it
as I had found it the first time
but by this time I do not know
what I thought when I thought back then

there is no time yet it grows less
there is the sound of rain at night
arriving unknown in the leaves
once without before or after
then I hear the thrush waking
at daybreak singing the new song

"The New Song" by W.S. Merwin, from The Moon Before Morning. © Copper Canyon Press, 2014.

 

And so we say adieu to April and to poetry focus.

exactly

rejuvenation

Spent most of Sunday wandering around my favored Botanical Gardens.

 So nice they have a sushi bar right in the middle ;)

Serenity~for the moment.

 

First time I'd see the blacksmith shop in operation~very chatty smithy.

And for once, a people photo.

A slice of tranquility to carry in the pocket for this week.

slices of life

Walked into work this weekend and found that we all were gifted with a gorgeous grand piano in the recital space!   We were all sneaking in between lessons to play it~gorgeous tone. 

 And then it was time to explore another 'only in Austin' sort of event...

Attended Eeyore's Birthday Party~all kinds of weird Austin on display.   The invite said costumes and we presumed it was to be Milne-related, but oh no.  Not by a mile.

 As it was sweltering, we voted to leave after one full loop around Pease Park.

That Willy Wonka moment of opening a gorgeous bar of chocolate.

In progress for marscapone cheese pots.

Transformation complete.

other presences

Despite being an English major and a~it must be said~voracious reader, I have yet to read an Updike novel.  However, I stumbled upon this quote last night and thought it was too gorgeous to keep to myself.  Happy weekend all y'all!

"Being human cannot be borne alone.  We need other presences.  We need soft night noises~a mother speaking downstairs, a grandfather rumbling in response, cars swishing past on Philadelphia Avenue and their headlights wheeling around the room.  We need the little clicks and signs of a sustaining otherness.  We need the Gods."

~Updike

the perfect date

Thanks to grad school classmate for reminding me of this marvelous dialogue!

Fridayyyyyyyy

 discipline is a

lovely and steadying force

continuity

delivered daily

 miles of paths and the pavement

shoe found salvation

twists of hopeful

white twists of hopeful

photosynthesizing the

wild weather transformed

huh

The more I ponder this, the more I like it.

another kind of alleluia

My freezer is well-stocked with Cadburys.

Am liking the retro design on the pennies.

easter joy

May you find joy in however you celebrate this day!

honour

Once upon a time, I was a high school teacher covering both the English and choral world.  One year, I had a junior transfer student who got into a small jam.

He was a quiet, polite student~usually sitting on the edges of the English class.  As a person who has frequently transferred schools, I felt for him~trying to navigate a new environment.  

He asked me to be his advocate when he was in front of the Discipline Committee and I agreed.

He got to stay in school and after graduation, we stayed in infrequent contact.

Until a couple of weeks ago when he emailed me to thank me for that afternoon and to invite me to his West Point graduation.  That moment made up for filing my tax returns last week and seeing teaching in the stark b/w reality of numbers.

What an honour.

And the universe continued to smile upon me with a gift of a dime found.

now the green blade risese

Am ever so pleased that these eggs have survived all my moves.

burbles of beauty

It's spring inside, even though the outer weather is going through some kind of adolescent fits of extremes.

I say if there's fruit on top of it, it can be served at breakfast, no?

Impossible to stare at this chirpy orange and not have a lift of spirit.

because some times you just need zany

Nickel found on today's walk.

And some days, you just need to sip bubbly water through a crazy straw.

in this here place

"here...in this here place,

we flesh; flesh that weeps,

laughs; flesh that dances on bare feet

in grass.  Love it.  Love it hard."

~Toni Morrison

& crisp apple strudel

After sitting on my 'to explore' list for a couple of years, finally made it to Fredericksburg~site of one of the large Germanic settlements in Texas.  Was completely surprised to learn that Admiral Nimitz was a Texan~you'd think somewhere in my years of California living, I would have learned that factoid.

 This is part of the house his grandparents built when they arrived in America.

 

Whimsical bench.

Close-up of some of the glasswork.

Honest-to-goodness flaky and scrumptious apple strudel!

And of course, a pretzel with German mustard had to be tried.

Wildflowers for miles.