Month / April 2024

by Cheryl, Gulf Coast Poet

Life Goes On

Maybe our male cardinal is feeding sunflower seeds to his mate as she sits on a new nest somewhere nearby. Photo by Aaron Ducette from Unsplash.

Life Goes On

Cool early morning.

Flowers bloom in ruined woods,

two bunnies munch grass.

The cardinals sing again…

All is well, and life goes on!

Copyright© 2024 by Cheryl Batavia

Life Goes On

We often see the male cardinal visiting the homemade feeder at the side of the house. He seems to have developed an addiction to black oil sunflower seeds. I haven’t seen the female for a while. She may be sitting on a new nest. I hear a lot of singing these days!

Comcast is making good progress on installing the new internet cable system throughout our area. Maybe internet service will improve soon!

My projects are progressing well, and I’ll share more on that when the time comes, but all the hard work and the headaches are taking a toll. Ongoing physical therapy is quite painful and leaves me exhausted. I am not seeing benefits yet. The headaches continue. Computer time is contributing to the stiff muscles in my neck, back, and shoulders which seem to be causing the headaches. My physical therapist has found some abnormalities in my posture. I am leaning to the left (literally), and she thinks I may have a curvature in my spine. I think she will recommend some imaging to my neurologist. Since migraine remedies didn’t work, it is probable that the headaches are not migraines. Computer time is also taking a toll on my eyes.

It seems I have no other choice than to decrease computer time, so I am going to take a break. I will miss all of my blogging friends very much, but I hope to be back soon, stronger and with good news. Happy spring everyone! đŸ©·

by Cheryl, Gulf Coast Poet

Nature’s Blessings

Photo by Joel Henry from Unsplash

Photo by SGR from Unsplash

Photo by Maurito Nixon from Unsplash

Photo by Maurits Bausenhart

Photo by Ian Dooley from Unsplash

Nature’s Blessings

Blessings…

Celestial,

Earthly, Oceanic,

Terrestrial, and Personal…

Blessings!

Copyright© 2924 by Cheryl Batavia

Happy

Earth

Day!

May nature’s blessings fill our hearts with joy.

May we live in harmony with nature.

May we cherish and preserve nature’s gifts.

by Cheryl, Gulf Coast Poet

We Mourn Our Losses

Photo by Jamie Street from Unsplash

We Mourn Our Losses

Yesterday, I heard a loud commotion outside the window. I arrived just in time to see, silhouetted against the sunny sky, screaming birds pursuing slightly larger birds as they rose high in the sky. Then I noticed the mangled nest!

Sadly, I had witnessed a similar scenario before. A dozen years ago, I saw two angry mockingbirds repeatedly attacking a much larger osprey who was carrying their chick to its nest on a pole high above the parking lot. It was a hopeless situation for the mockingbirds, but they continued to attack.

Though I didn’t get a clear view of the birds yesterday, I am pretty sure the nest raider was a blue jay, known for preying on cardinal chicks.

Soon all was quiet. I saw the male cardinal pausing at the edge of the woods, silent now, and looking back toward the ruined nest as if to say goodbye. Cardinal family, you are in my thoughts. I share your sorrow, and I will always remember being privileged to witness your loving family life for an all-too-brief period.

I was too distraught to write about these devastating events yesterday, but this morning, it occurred to me that, even among humans, this is nature’s way. Many human children are victims of accidents, cruel diseases, famines, and wars not of their making. Many children die too soon. Today, I grieve for all the lost children, both animal and human.

We Mourn Our Losses

Joys and sorrows shared.

Births and deaths both nature’s way;

we mourn our losses.

Love makes us vulnerable…

both animals and humans.

by Cheryl, Gulf Coast Poet

Hearts & Minds

Photo by Onur Binay from Unsplash.

Hearts & Minds

So cool, so clear, so deep your streams of thought,

unsullied reason flowing through your mind.

So warm, so pure, so true your heart is wrought,

like tender sunshine, glowing soft and kind.

Between us, conversation ebbs and flows,

engaging both enlightened mind and heart.

So like the sun is love, the warm heart knows

thoughts come from cooling springs where rivers start.

While you and I may differ on some points,

the heart does not demand that minds agree.

Our discourse always blesses and anoints.

Our hearts remain conjoined; our minds are free.

Long may our hearts pulsate in synchrony,

between us cool streams flow unceasingly!

Copyright© 2024 by Cheryl Batavia

This poem was written for Robert for Valentine’s Day and published in New Lyricist magazine, Issue 01, EIF Publishing, Ingrid Wilson.

Photo by Patrice Bouchard from Unslpash

News from the Palm Palace

The Palm Palace is a busy place this week. The Queen’s weeks of keeping the eggs warm are over; the eggs hatched on Sunday. The King has appeared, feeding insects to the tiny hatchlings. More news to come about the Cardinal Royal family.