Empty Room
A chair at the window A trunk full of dreams A bed with a sag in it And holes in the screens Yarn all a tatter Clothes in a box Books in a corner Doors without locks Life is a moment It’s raw and it’s pungent It’s bitingly brutal And tender as teardrops We’re strong...
Gramp and Shirley Jean – Chapter 3
Shirley Jean and Gramp were sitting at the kitchen table in the early morning, eating oatmeal, topped with Gramp’s clover honey and wild blueberries. “Gramp?” Shirley Jean said thru a mouthful of oatmeal. “Yes?” He turned to look at her sweet face. “Is today the day...
The Highway Man
The autumn wind was taking a stand and declaring summer to be over. She put on her best face, scudding thin clouds across the moon, baring trees of their coats, relieving folks of their hats and most of all whipping skirts and dresses around the legs of women daring...
Gramp and Shirley Jean – Chapter 2
One afternoon Little Shirley Jean watched as a car turned up the old road to Gramp’s farm. The car through up dust on both sides as it wound it’s way up towards Gramp’s house. Not many people came calling in the middle of the day so everyone stood watching and...
THE HALLOWEEN RIDE
Deep night, a slice of moon Bright as a dagger All things warm blooded well hidden The souls on this eve, return for a chance To beg their past sins forgiven Standing at the forefront grinning The dust a disembodied beast I heard his thundering wagon approach His grin...
Dear God #4
God? Are You there? I've been watching the news lately and I don't know what to think. Well, mostly about gay marriage. There's a county clerk that praises You for getting her out of jail. She won't sign gay marriage documents for people who want to marry and she says...
Gramp and Shirley Jean – Chapter 1
Shirley Jean opened her eyes. Still fighting sleep, she turned over to watch Gramp walk across the yard, carrying the sliver milk bucket to milk their two cows. Her white iron bed was low enough to look out the wooden framed window next to her bed. She thought her...
Dear God #3
God, are you there? This might be a delicate topic for You but I was wondering about some things. For one, why are we here while You live in Paradise somewhere. I mean, from the time we get up, we have a boatload of chores to do and by the time we go to bed we are...
Dear God #2
Hello, God. I’ve got a problem. I hate my co-worker. No, I know that’s not what you expect of me but the fact is I hate her. I’ve twisted every way about it but it’s still there. How do I unhate someone? Don’t we have enough to think about? Well, if You must know, she...
Welcome!
Here you will find the latest entries of Shirley's musings, poems, songs, stories and photos. Click on the links to the right if you want to see all entries in one category.
Dear God #1
Hello? God? Oh my! I didn’t think You were really there! Well, I have a problem. Not a big one, but still, I thought I might catch You-do You ever have down time? Um, it’s my zipper. Zipper, You know the thing that holds your jeans up or pulls your dress together. The...
Snap Dragon Ladies
In New Orleans, in the Garden District, where the warm air lay on your shoulders like a cat, lived the widow Madam Gardner. Her house was a pale pink color with great white pillars. A black iron fence surrounded the velvet lawns, ancient twisting oaks lined the...
Little Black Hen
You might think chickens are creatures that go around pecking at the ground, looking for bugs and now and again laying an egg, as though it were a surprise to her and to you. They fluff their feathers, squawk for unknown reasons, jump at shadows that appear out of...
A New Day
A new day, one that's never been used before! I will grab it by the tail and wrestle it to the ground. Or I might softly listen, while looking with brown eyes, uncovering mysteries beneath pine trees.
The Lake Dance
The Great Lake, rolling ice-chunks In white-capped little curls Morning creeping meekly A beach strewn with tiny pearls Her night of joy now over Though echoes still remain Of a party like no other Where all things took the blame Peeking out through rattling glass...
COME BE MY LOVER
It's not that I don't need you It's just I have found myself I have filled up all the wanting With pearls of my own wealth The gift of love I give you Is not the love of youth It is fire mixed with wisdom And passion mixed with truth Come and be my lover Neath the...
BIRTHDAY BLESSING
May you have Mysterious surprises Rose streaked sunrises Friendly encounters Wind swept strolls Snowfalls from heaven With tiny little secrets May you have Fragrant coffee Behind old glass windows Phone calls from loved ones On a cold winter day Evenings with bare...
CROSSROADS
I'm at a crossroads after all those miles I find my heart breaking beneath false smiles I pray for a sign that is right and true but silence the answer when the storm is through bring back my babies when they needed my touch when holding and rocking could answer so...
MESSAGE TO THE UNIVERSE
I want to play and sing and dance I want to be excited at the beginning of each day And gratefully satisfied at the end I want to find mystery and otherworldliness in my observations Communicate with the wind the trees, the lake, things under my feet and above my head...
HUNGER
The coyote was hungry. It had been a long winter. The snow had fallen, sometimes in soft blankets, other times in angry swirls. It had been mad to cover the earth. It had been pulled down from heaven and lay like diamonds, like cold ice queens, like angels with silver...