Frieda sits waiting

David and Frieda on their wedding day

My memory of Frieda

She waits wearing her jacket with the fur collar,

Perfectly still, perfectly made up, her handbag on her lap,

If she is anxious it doesn’t show

She is as still as a statue, her snow white hair neat and combed

Her legs close together, her skirt pulled down,

Her gloves held loosely, rest on her handbag,

Her handbag, by the way, is empty except for a lipstick and her change purse,

She waits for her children to take her out for the holidays,

Perfectly still, perfectly made up, neatly coiffed, she is silent and waiting.

Still, small in her jacket with the fur trim,

Her gloves and her handbag in her lap 

Street Cred

From Cadillac Forums at CadillacOwners.com

The well-mannered Escalade

Waits patiently til I get

Across the avenue

Dark glass separates us

Keeps us from making eye-contact

But I acknowledge his courtesy

From the far side of the street

Bergamote: Earl Grey liked it well enough

My evening cuppa. from photographer David Wilmot

Earl Grey liked it well enough  to infuse his tea

I like it well enough to sip and savor,

It excites my tongue and interest 

My senses with its sweet fragrance 

And the caress of its exotic taste

You'll see, he said

Soon, we'll joke about it, he said

She did not want to laugh it off

She did not want to cry about it either

He shrugged, gently pulling a tear 

Off her cheek with his thumb

You'll see, he said

The political is personal... really

Warning, all: this is one of the rants I promised you, not a poem....

To me, the hope and change in this election is in the details. Rabid anti-government, quasi-libertarian candidates from the self-proclaimed "reform" Tea Party tanked Republican chances in many races across the country.

I would say, even in the race for the White House, which the "real" Mitt Romney might have had a shot at winning without the coattails of the far right.

This is good news because a big country actually needs government. Our  315million citizens in 50 states and countless counties and municipalities need governance. More importantly, we need our goverment to help us stay safe, to assist us after a storm devastates our shorelines.

It is the government, local and national, that keeps us out of harm's way. The goverment runs our military, our police, our infrastructure, our educational systems,. Goverment regulates our industries, our railways, our financial institutions.

Government is how a country manages to keep things going. Goverment is here to protect us, its citizens. It is there as part of the contract we have as a society with each other.

did he know

Did he know when he bought her the scooter

That there would be chipped teeth or

Scraped knees?

Given in innocence, how could he have guessed

There would be tears and scars?

If there were a god

If there were a god, he would have made

The rains to fall overnight, while farmers slept,

Gentle drops that would not ruffle the plantings,

The snow would blanket the ground in the wee hours,

Beauty that is not treacherous for walking or riding,

But still lets our children experience the awe of  gliding
down hills,

The amazing rush of sledding in the mild cool winds