One Deep Breath- Simple Pleasures

barefoot in the grass

one last time before frost~

indian summer

Today was a day of contrasts. It was almost 90 degrees (this is October in Michigan?), yet a stiff breeze scattered tiny elm leaves across the yard, making it look like fall. It was a day of "lasts" for me, I think- last tomatoes from the garden, last time to hang my sheets on the line, last lunch on the patio, and yes, last time to wander barefoot in the yard.

Tomorrow, the tide turns - rain is forecast, and a chill wind, dropping the temperatures into the 40's overnight. So tomorrow will probably be a day of "firsts" - first fire in the fireplace, first time wearing a jacket, and, sadly ('cuz I'm a barefoot girl at heart), first time wearing shoes and socks.

for more simple pleasures, go here

One Deep Breath-Snips and Snails

boys play games of war

never anticipating

its grim reality

With apologies for the somber tone of this haiku, I've always been bothered watching little boys "playing war," although most of them seem to gravitate toward fighting games no matter how much we try to steer them away. It makes me wonder about the seemingly inherent tendency toward violence among men, one that leads even boys to "play" at killing and destruction.

for more haiku, look here

One Deep Breath-Recipe

southern style big boys~

pluck from the vine, slice thinly

sprinkle with sugar and salt

Every summer, my wonderful neighbor shares the bounty from his tomato patch. A couple of times a week, he crosses the street, large paper sack in hand, filled with tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers for me. He always has a pocket full of Magic and Molly's favorite biscuits as well. We have a nice chat, and then I slice up a plate of warm tomatoes, and sprinkle them with sugar and salt, just the way my grandma did. Yum :)

One Deep Breath-Daybreak

stumbling from bed

i bathe in your radiance

my sleepy soul awakes

~

bright eyed star
your brilliance hails the morn~
sunrise salutation

My day begins early, with a steaming cup of coffee which I carry to the living room, while Jim, Magic and Molly sleep contentedly in the warm spot I've left behind. Pulling open the vertical blinds, I'm usually greeted by this sparkling orb rising above the trees across the way. I lift my mug in a silent salute to this star of stars, thankful for another brilliant daybreak.

One Deep Breath-Evening

summer ends~

evening shadows

fall too soon

Just this week, there is a noticable difference in the length of days. By the time I've cleared up supper dishes and watered plants, the western sky has started to glower at me. Hurry up, it chides, put on your walking shoes or grab your bike, there's not much time left before darkness swallows the sun.

One Deep Breath-Wildflowers

lavender blanket

covers the hills

with soothing fragrance

~~~~~~~~

~other wildflower inspirations are here

photo credit

One Year of One Deep Breath

one

brief

moment

captured

with words on paper

memory frozen in time

One year ago, One Deep Breath began offering us the oppotunity to share haiku based on a weekly prompt. The challege of this poetry is to capture the essence of an image or experience in just a few carefully chosen words. The best haiku read like an exhalation of one deep breath, the kind you might experience when a moment of beauty strikes your heart.

Thanks to Susan and Jennifer for encouraging us to stop each week in the midst of our busy lives and ponder the wide world, searching for that special something that catches our eye in just a certain way, then pare it down to its essence and write about it.

One Deep Breath-Architecture

Avebury, England, May 2005

stone circle

ancient spirits

wander here

~

faceless mystics~

set each stone

by hand?

This stone circle in Avebury fascinated me, just thinking about the reasons for the arranagement of stones, and wondering how in the world those ancient people got the stones in just that order. By the way, that's not an ancient spirit dressed in black wandering among the stones - it's just me :)

For more architecturally based haiku, go here

One Deep Breath-Common Ground

universal language

transcends words

into melodies of peace

In 1999, conductor Daniel Barenboim and Palestinian scholar Edward Said co-founded the Israeli-Arab Youth Orchestra (also known as the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra) as a cultural tool for bringing together Israelis and Arabs. Young musicians from both nations attended workshops in Spain, and then traveled the world giving concerts to promote cultural awarenss and harmony.

Barenboim once told a reporter that "Everyone should become active in the way that they are most suited - music is my way!" The orchestra now has it's home base in Seville, Spain, and continues to use music as the common ground to illustrate that Arabs and Israelis can work together peacefully.

photo credit

One Deep Breath-Viewpoint

aloft among clouds
home remains
a distant dream

We fly a lot, commuting to Florida by air like some Michigander's do to their summer cottages "up north." I can't say I like flying...I endure it, because it gets me where I want to go quickly. Tonight's flight home was one of those particularly grueling ones. The plane was packed, the cooling system wasn't working too well, they made us board really early, and a child screamed incessantly for about 45 minutes at the beginning and end of the flight.

From my vantage point, I could see the plane's wing, skimming the tops of fluffy white clouds that floated endlessly across the horizon. On another night, I might have found more beauty in that sight. Tonight, I just wanted to be home, and it seemed terribly far away.

photo from here

more haiku here

One Deep Breath-Nurture

mother's kiss

soft on baby's cheek~

gentle blessing

more nurturing haiku

photo credit

One Deep Breath-The Sea

A couple of weeks ago, in the midst of an absolutely crazy busy week, I flew to Florida for two days. It seemed ridiculous to me at the time~I was exhausted from dealing with work, preparing for the competition I was accompanying, and handling issues with my mother in law. But, Jim was there for the week, and he encouraged me to take the 48 hours I managed to eke out of my schedule and come down for a brief respite.

In that tiny period of time, really just one full day, I managed to do the things I love most about spending time in Florida (aside from being with my family, which is of course, always the best part of being there). Eating at the outdoor cafes, riding our bikes, and of course, walking along the beach.


waves lick my toes
eternal rhythms
echo in my heart
~
taste of sea salt
lingers on my lips~
ocean's kiss
~
sea walk calms my spirit
sends me home
rested and renewed





take a deep breath and plunge into more sea haiku here

One Deep Breath-Spring Sounds

I love waking up to the joyful conversation of birds in early spring...you can tell they're excited about nesting, loving the warm breeze, and looking forward to a tasty breakfast of plump worms (yum!)

spring sunrise

bird's chorus sings

joyful alleluia's

Equally joyous are the sounds of children's voices from the elementary school down the street,
raised in excitment at the promise of warmer days to play outside, and spring vacation coming soon.

eager young voices

all a-twitter

on the playground

for more sounds of spring in haiku, click here

One Deep Breath-Short and Sweet

suckling honeybee hangs on for dear life
~~~~~~~~
indulging life's sweetest passion, creating nectar

for more haiku one liners, go here

One Deep Breath-Stillness/Calm

Like most of you, most of my days are sooo crazy busy, it's really hard to find a moment to even think about stillness and calm, much less experience it. So, I make it a point to get up early every morning just to have some time when the house is totally quiet, and the world is all just for me.

waiting for dawn

coffee percolates

beside me

Armed with a fragrant mug filled to the brim, I grab my book and morning pages journal, and curl up in my favorite chair. The morning sun rises just outside the window, bathing the room in warm rainbows of light.

basking in sun glow

morning sky

blesses me

For that one hour, sipping my coffee, watching the day break, and hearing the morning songs of birds, I can breathe deeply and let the magic of words envelop me.

centering my heart

in quiet time~

such a gift

Without this moment of calm and stillness each morning, I feel wrong-footed and out of sorts all day long.

My son and daughter-in-law have been in visiting family and friends in Thailand and China for the past month. My son wrote today that the Asian people sum up their perception of life in America with these three words..."Fast, full, and busy." What an amazingly succinct description of the way we live, always trying to cram as much into every moment as possible, racing from one activity to the next. I find that I'm actively looking for ways to slow life down, to add more stillness and calm into my day, to find more of the quiet magic that my hour in the morning creates for me.

in stillness

fluttering hearts

breathe deep

for more thoughts on calm and stillness, go here

One Deep Breath - Mud/Dirt/Earth

If there's one thing I have plenty of around my backyard at this time of year, it's mud. Of course, my two fluffy little white dogs always seem to find it. Magic in particular, will roar off the back porch on the trail of a squirrel or a rabbit, tearing circles around the trunk of the old red maple tree and sending huge divots of black mud flying in all directions.

in hot pursuit

four paws scatter

moist earth to the wind

Molly is a little more delicate, mostly because she abhors getting her feet washed. She tiptoes carefully across yard, trying to hop over the muddier areas around the trees.

preferring to stay clean

this tiny pooch

eschews damp ground

Nevertheless, spring time means keeping lots of old towels by the back door, since there's just no way to avoid the mud covered footprints :~)

why bother cleaning

during springtime's big thaw~

"shih-tzu" always happens!

One Deep Breath-Color

Long before my CD alarm had the opportunity to wake me with something lovely from Chopin or Debussy, the chirping of my cell phone sent me roaring from my warm nest of blankets and puppies. An unusual phone call in the wee hours of the morning always induces panic - especially when one's only child is on the other side of the world. Happily though, this call was nothing more than a bleary eyed teenager in search of someone named Devin.

Nonetheless, there would be no more sleep for me. Wrapping my flannel robe securely against the dampness of the winter morning, I pushed the start button on the coffeemaker and pulled open the blinds to greet the day.

stark winter white
unrelieved by color
crimson sun breaks through

We are in the midst of winter now, my entire world like a set from a vintage movie. Oddly enough, even the book I'm reading (Paint it Black, by Janet Finch) has a black and white cover. But thanks to that early phone call, I was up in time to see the only spot of color in the sky, a momentary blush as the sun passed through the thick cloud cover on its journey heavenward.

Determined to add some brightness to the dreary landscape, I filled two bright red mugs with coffee, laid them on a tray dressed in a colorful napkin, and carried them to the bedroom.

statement in stoneware
cheerful and warm
brightens the morning

Sipping my fragrant (black!) coffee, I surveyed the closet with a critical eye. My wardrobe definitely reflects my occupation - a performing musician wears a lot of black and white. Today, I was determined to add some color to my body - a bright turquoise sweater should do the trick nicely. And yes, there are earrings, a watch, and even a tiny turquoise bag to match.

reflecting desire
color of sky adorns me
my landscape brightens

So, armed with these touches of color, I'm ready to face the monochrome of my environment, sprinkling a bit of bright excitement into the greyness of the day.

I hope your day has its own CoLorFul moments...

One Deep Breath-Spices

Spicy Thai noodles

Our daughter in law is from Thailand, a country well known for the spiciness of its cuisine. When the four of us dine at a Thai restaurant here in the states, Jim and I always order our food "mildly" spiced. Brian has "graduated" to "medium," but the server usually takes one look at Nantana and asks, "Very hot?" She simply nods her head in reply.

our

Thai

daughter

craves spice

hotter is better

pungent reminder of her home

~

my palate is mild mannered

cool flavors are best

westerner

at heart

fears

heat

Brian and Nantana are in Thailand now, where they celebrated Chinese New Year with some authentic Thai cuisine. Read more about their activities here.

One Deep Breath-Shelter

enclosed within me

my womb guarded you

impenetrable fortress
~

your fierce protector

my arms enfolded you

sweet shelter from life's storm

~

flown from the nest

my love surrounds you

safe haven for the spirit

The most elemental of life's shelters is the relationship between a mother and child. I am reminded of this lately, as I recall my son's birth 27 years ago this month. He flew from the parental nest long ago, and later this week will fly even farther afield as he and his wife travel to her home in Thailand where he will spend several weeks with his "other family." He has certainly attained every parents goal for their child - a fulfilling relationship and a satisfying, independent lifestyle. So, there is little I can offer him in the way of "shelter," except the most basic of all life's protections - my unconditional love.

Inspiration from here; photo from here

One Deep Breath-Twilight

summer time

filled with endless play

day stretches until dusk

~

street light's amber glow

signals twilights arrival

mother calls me home

~

fresh from a cool bath

tucked snugly into bed

silver moon stands watch

~

What a pleasant memory - long summer days, when all the children in my neighborhood were allowed to stay out and play until dusk. The standard rule applied for all of us - when the streetlight's came on, it was time to head home. Since I was the "good girl" I was always appointed lookout. One eye peeled toward the big lampost on the corner, I'd try to wring every last minute of play from the day. Someone's mother (usually mine!) would start calling out our names, and we'd finally go racing toward open front doors, shouting breathlessly, "See you tomorrow!"

Inspiration from here; photo from here