Focus On Now May 23, 2021
Posted by nrhatch in Humor, Life Balance, Mindfulness, Poetry.11 comments
Spirituality is a process to enjoy . . . not a goal to achieve
Just be present, awake and aware
Focus on NOW as Ego falls away
Revealing your true self
Aah . . . that’s better!
Looking for a Summer Beach Read? Check out Pam’s fresh-off-the-press Flashes of Light: True Tales of the Extraordinary Ordinary!
The Ghosts of Yesterday May 7, 2021
Posted by nrhatch in Humor, Mindfulness, People, Poetry.20 comments
Sometimes we want to go “back in time”
We yearn for days of yore
It can be challenging to embrace “here” and “now”
When ghosts from the past beckon
With childhood scents and sounds
I NEED A TIME MACHINE!
Alas!
The book of life doesn’t include a Rewind button
Or a Fast Forward
We live it or we miss it.
Go on ~> Turn the Page.
Aah . . . that’s better!
Related: Haiku – Stranger
Dr. Fauci’s House Call December 25, 2020
Posted by nrhatch in Humor, Joke, Poetry.17 comments
By Kevin A. Wilson (with apologies to Clement Clarke Moore)
‘Twas some days before Christmas—how many I’m not sure
(The days ran together; everything was a blur).
All the houses were locked down from COVID-19,
With everyone wishing for the promised vaccine.
The children were nestled and sleeping just fine.
They were all tuckered out from their classes online.
And mamma in her kerchief and I in my cap
Had just sanitized our hands and hung up our masks
The year had been hard. We were due a vacation
But the thing wanted most? Emergency use authorization
Then out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I assumed it was another 2020 disaster.
I ran to the window and put on my mask,
But what would I see? I was too scared to ask.
The neighbors were quiet and socially distant,
Awaiting the time they’d be COVID resistant.
But despite travel bans, there then did appear
A miniature sleigh and eight tiny reindeer.
But this wasn’t Santa. His gut wasn’t paunchy.
It was the trusted presence of Anthony Fauci.
More rapid than eagles, at warp speed they came,
And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name:
“Now Pfizer! Now Sanofi! Now Johnson & Johnson!
“On Moderna! On BioNTech! On Adaptive and Amgen!
To the top of the porch! To the top of the wall!
Now vaccinate, vaccinate, vaccinate all!”
As a virus expelled by a cough or a sneeze
When it meets plexiglass rises up on the breeze;
So up to the house-top the pharma all flew,
With the sleigh full of hope, and Dr. Fauci, too.
And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof
The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.
As I drew in my head, and was turning around,
Down the chimney Fauci came with a bound.
He was dressed in a suit, as was always his way,
And his neatly cut hair was a smart silver-grey.
A chart in one hand, a syringe in the other,
And a medical bag—a gift from his mother.
The wisdom in his eyes and the knowledge in his head
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread.
With his reassuring smile covered up with a mask,
His no-nonsense style led him straight to the task.
He sprung to my side as I rolled up my sleeve,
And he stuck in the vaccine as quick as you please.
He flew to the bedroom, gave mamma a shot,
Then vaxxed both our kids without waking them up.
Inoculations complete, he returned to the chimney,
And gave me a pamphlet about what he put in me.
Then raising his finger but not touching his nose,
And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose.
“C’mon, team!” he said. “We’ve a great opportunity.
If we vaccinate more we can reach herd immunity!”
Then he yelled back to me, as the sleigh quickly rose,
“I’ll be back in a fortnight for the follow-up dose.”
Aah . . . that’s the ticket!
A Bit Of Covid Humor July 5, 2020
Posted by nrhatch in Humor, Joke, Poetry.35 comments
COVID IS RAGING . . . MY LIFE IS A MESS
I LIVE IN PAJAMAS AND DON’T HAVE TO DRESS
I’M IN ISOLATION, JUST STAYING AT HOME
AND WOULD GIVE MY LAST DOLLAR TO BE FREE TO ROAM
I’M SERIOUSLY AT RISK (OR THAT’S WHAT THEY SAY)
TELLING ME TO STAY IN AND NOT GO OUT EACH DAY
IN MY HEAD I’M SO YOUNG THOUGH MY LICENSE REVEALS
I’M A 70-PLUS SENIOR (BUT THAT’S NOT HOW IT FEELS!)
WHEN I RUN OUT OF FOOD AND DELIVERIES ARE LATE
I HAVE TO BUY GROCERIES BETWEEN 7 AND 8
SO EARLY MORNING I HEAD OUT TO RESTOCK
AND DISCOVER A LINE WINDING ‘ROUND THE BLOCK
SOCIAL DISTANCING SENIORS ALL 6 FEET APART
MAKE ME WONDER WHEN I BECAME AN OLD FART
MY LATEST NEW OUTFIT IS GLOVES AND A MASK
AND I’M STARTING TO WONDER IF I’M UP TO THIS TASK
I WASH ALL MY GROCERIES ALL FRUIT, MEAT AND VEG
WILL THIS ADDITIONAL PRECAUTION TIP ME OVER THE EDGE?
MY BEAUTIFUL BROWN HAIR HAS WIDE ROOTS OF GREY
NO HAIRDRESSERS AROUND TO HELP WASH THEM AWAY
I’VE BEEN TALKING TO MYSELF & ANSWERING BACK
IS IT MONDAY OR FRIDAY? I’VE REALLY LOST TRACK
I’VE STOPPED KEEPING HOUSE
IT’S WEEKS SINCE I’VE DUSTED
AND I KNOW WITHOUT VISITORS
I’LL NEVER GET BUSTED
I FACETIME FRIENDS OR GROUP CHAT ON ZOOM
AND TRY TO PRETEND WE’RE ALL IN THE SAME ROOM
THANK GOD LIQUOR STORES ARE CONSIDERED ‘ESSENTIAL’
WITHOUT DAILY DRINKS THIS WOULD DRIVE US ALL MENTAL
EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE IT IS GOOD TO REFLECT
ON WHAT THIS ALL MEANS AND WHAT WE CAN EXPECT
IT’S A TIME TO BE GRATEFUL FOR ALL THAT WE’VE GOT
LIKE A WARM HOUSE AND FOOD THAT OTHERS HAVE NOT
THE BOTTOM LINE HERE
BY THE TIME THIS ALL ENDS
IS THAT WE’LL GET THROUGH IT
WITH OUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS
Aah . . . that’s better!
Source: E-mail from unknown author (sent by Joan M.)
Broomsticks, Cauldrons, So Bewitching October 31, 2019
Posted by nrhatch in Humor, Poetry.26 comments
Doorbells ringing
“We want CANDY!”
To avoid tricks
Keep sweets handy
Ghosts and goblins
Mischief night
Things that go bump
In the night
An endless parade
Of sights so scary
Skeletons remind us
To be wary
Costume parties
Bowls of treats
Instead of dinner
Let’s eat sweets.
Broomsticks, cauldrons
So bewitching
Black cats stare
With tails a-twitching
Carved pumpkins
Grins askew
Eyes gleaming
As we all scream . . . BOO!
Aah . . . bewitching!
Art Ovation Hotel October 3, 2018
Posted by nrhatch in Art & Photography, Food & Drink, Poetry.32 comments
We attended an art reception at the Art Ovation Hotel in Sarasota.
First, we got a signature lemon lavender cocktail:
Then we got some nibbles:
While we imbibed, we listened to music:
And perused the art:
Before checking out Dragonfly Cafe:
Where middle schoolers (wearing lavender and raspberry berets) were using ancient typewriters to craft impromptu poems for passers-by:
But the biggest delight
Of our visit to Dragonfly Cafe that night?
Not a single smart phone in sight.
Aah . . . that’s better!
Kingston Sun January 17, 2017
Posted by nrhatch in Magick & Mystery, Poetry, Word Play.14 comments
I woke up
The tendrils of a dream followed me
With a sound resounding in memory
I listened to the night
All quiet . . . all calm
Save the clock’s constant tick tock
Nothing to disturb my slumber
I turned over
Plumped my pillow
And began my return to Nod
Endeavor interrupted, I surfaced again
To the sound heard first in a dream
My phone’s ring tone – Kingston Sun
This time
The sound resounded
In real time
I got up and fished for my phone in the dark
One “Missed Call” . . .
Just one.
Shakespeare In The Park May 15, 2016
Posted by nrhatch in Music & Dance, Nature, Poetry, Travel & Leisure.22 comments
On a day that threatened rain, we headed to Bay Preserve in Osprey for an Asolo Repertory Theatre performance of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night . . . with a modern twist.
The setting for this “in the park” production balanced well with the play’s set design of a summer camp.
The cast worked magic with Shakespeare’s timeless comedy of unrequited love, pride, pranks, and self-discovery.
And the rain held off until after the play and reception ended.
“If music be the food of love, play on.”
Aah . . . that’s better!
What’s your favorite Shakespeare play?
A Love Like That May 3, 2016
Posted by nrhatch in Gratitude, Happiness, Nature, Poetry.29 comments
“And still, after all this time,
The sun never says to the earth,
“You owe Me.”
Look what happens with
A love like that,
It lights the Whole Sky.”
― Hāfez
Aah . . . that’s brilliant!
Beneath The Breeze November 17, 2015
Posted by nrhatch in Magick & Mystery, Music & Dance, Nature, Poetry.45 comments
One night, I saw beneath the breeze
Beyond the leaves
To an ocean of shimmering cells within
Another world revealed
Nothing stagnant
Everything vibrant and alive
Awake and aware
Dancing to the beat of the Eternal Now
Aah . . . that’s better!
When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.
~ Lao Tzu
Spirit Lights The Way 