Much to enjoy.
Much to be thankful for.
Much to hope for.
Much to work toward.
We find inspiration
in the love of family and friends,
in the courage of everyday heroes,
and in the vision of those
whose new ideas
lead to brighter tomorrows.
We move forward
in joy, in gratitude, in hope,
and with the will to persevere.
Much Love,
Cheryl & Robert
Stonehenge is a popular tourist destination, and every year, thousands of visitors celebrate the summer and winter solstices here. Stonehenge has religious significance to modern Pagans and Neo Druids. It is one of the most important historical sites in Europe.
Source: Wikipedia. There is an excellent article on Stonehenge in Wikipedia, if you are interested in reading more about it.
Forgotten are the venerated trees,
the winter solstice rites of yesteryears.
Neglected are the ancient mysteries.
Our sacred groves are drowned in Gaia’s tears.
Beloved traditions once so highly prized,
now, tattered vestiges of olden times.
Our cherished ambitions, half-realized,
faint echoes of the ancient, mystic rhymes.
A wreath of evergreens adorns my door
for winter solstice, the year’s longest night.
Observing festivities as before,
we’ll dance around a bonfire’s blazing light
and celebrate the cycle of the year.
Then days will lengthen, bringing us good cheer!
Copyright© 2021 by Cheryl Batavia.
This poem was written for Ingrid’s “Festive Sonnet Sunday” at https://experimentsinfiction.com/2021/12/19/festive-sonnet-sunday
Please check there to read Shakespearean Sonnets by many poets. Thank you, Ingrid, for sponsoring this wonderful event!
(December 21st)
Christmas
smells delightful…
fresh-cut evergreen boughs
aroma of cookies baking
hot cider with cinnamon sticks
roses on the table
festive dinner
warm fire
Christmas
sounds beautiful…
carolers caroling
crusted snow crunching underfoot
“Merry Christmas!” heard everywhere
Santa’s big “ho, ho, ho!”
children’s laughter
church bells
Christmas,
a lovely sight…
colored lights and tinsel
boat parades with Santas aboard
people dressed in their party clothes
lighted pines and palm trees
evergreen wreaths
holly
Christmas
is delicious…
candy canes, fruits, and nuts
Christmas dinner at Grandma’s house
kisses under the mistletoe
snowflakes cold on my tongue
steaming cocoa
fruitcake
Christmas
is heartwarming…
sitting on Santa’s knee
surprises in Christmas stockings
Christmas baskets given away
cookies left for Santa
cards from old friends
goodwill
Copyright© 2021 by Cheryl Batavia
A couple of years ago,
when my daughters visited me,
we were on our way to swim with manatees…
All tours were cancelled!
On the road, we found
restaurants serving only carry-out.
Two hours before we arrived at our hotel,
the dining room closed…
The museum we had planned to visit
had closed the day before.
We walked around the city
for two days, eating carry-out.
Beaches had closed near my house.
My daughters caught
one of the last flights home to Texas…
Covid had arrived!
This year my daughters visited…
vaccinated, masks ready, restaurants serving,
beaches open, manatees waiting…
Happy Thanksgiving!
Eve Ellen
makes her mother proud…
ambitious,
creative,
dedicated. Her life is
a labor of love.
Katey Marie
makes her mother proud.
Her joy is
contagious!
Horses, dogs, friends, family…
life shared in photos.
Emails, calls…
My daughters have their
far-away
lives to live.
Times spent together, precious…
cherished memories!
Copyright© 2021 by Cheryl Batavia
This is the final post about my daughters’ visit during Thanksgiving week!
The second poem is my attempt at writing sharadomas, a form of poetry featured on David’s blog, “The skeptic’s kaddish of a son.” The poem, “Warm love or: Glowing memories” was posted on December 7, 2021. Sharadoma stanzas have a syllable count of 3/5/3/3/7/5. I didn’t attempt a cleave poem, although David’s was lovely!
The majority of the animals at Homosassa Wildlife State Park are rescued animals that are unable to survive in the wild: manatees injured by boat propellers being rehabilitated in the manatee rescue center, animals who were hit by cars, birds unable to fly because of impaired vision or injuries to their wings, endangered squirrels and other rare animals raised illegally in captivity and confiscated from their owners.
The whooping cranes were from a program to reestablish these endangered birds in Florida. The female whooping crane has impaired vision and cannot fly. The male found her at Homosassa Wildlife State Park and joined her in her enclosure. He could fly away, but he stays. Whooping cranes mate for life, and this is a very touching pair!
The tropical bird enclosure, like most of the enclosures, is open at the top. It has a stream running through it and is shaded by lovely trees. I saw egrets, once hunted almost to extinction for their mating plumage, flying into and out of the enclosure. They are free to visit, or maybe they are choosing to live there.
The marine fish seen from the underwater observatory under the main spring migrate seasonally, as do the manatees in the Homosassa River near the hot springs. Public boat travel is restricted in this area to protect these migratory animals.
American flamingos, extinct in Florida for over 100 years, were discovered about ten years ago living in the Florida Everglades. No one knows for sure how they got there, but they probably came from Central or South America. We are thrilled to have them living in the wild in Florida once again. I don’t know if the flamingos in the tropical bird enclosure are rescues or are part of an effort to reintroduce them to their former range.
Alligators, hunted almost to extinction for their hides, are now protected and are once again plentiful in Florida. Programs now collect a few young alligators from their nests, raise them to a size where they can defend themselves from predators, and release them to ensure their continued success in the wild.
The black vultures, handsome lively birds, live at the park by choice, but they are a welcome clean-up crew. We saw them stealing what appeared to be fresh-cut grain from the hippo after they ate the insects from his back. We saw them visiting the black bear and perched in the trees.
The red wolves are endangered and are part of a captive breeding program to reintroduce them into Florida.
Florida Panthers, proud symbol of Florida, are endangered and seriously inbred. Panthers from Texas were brought in a few years ago to refresh the gene pool. Along Route 75, “Alligator Alley,” that runs from east to west through the Florida Everglades, high fences have recently been erected to protect panthers from traffic.
The aging dike at Lake Okeechobe has undergone extensive renovations this year. Nutrient-rich water released from the lake has caused red tides in the Gulf of Mexico and blue-green algae overgrowth in our rivers, sickening people, killing fish, dolphins, endangered manatees and endangered sea turtles. From now on, water will be released from the lake into bodies of water in much smaller amounts. The water from Lake Okeechobe will once again flow into the Florida Everglades as it was intended to do. I think Wildlife numbers will increase there due to this restoration.
I hesitated to provide detailed background information in this post. After all, I only spent half a day walking around the park and reading signs. That is the source of most of the information given about the park. I am not a biologist or expert on the environment, just a retired elementary school teacher and amateur poet who loves animals and cares about wildlife and the environment. I have done some research on wildlife to write my enviromnent-themed book series about Florida animals, Hanging Out with Wild Animals. You can read more about the books on my website.
It is tragic that so many animals have been injured and driven to extinction by human settlement and human activities, but the animals who live at Homosassa Wildlife State Park, though disabled, help to raise public awareness of wildlife and environmental issues. As the sign says, they are “ambassadors of wildlife.”
Male whooping crane joined
flightless female whooping crane
in her enclosure.
He could choose to fly away,
but he loves her, so he stays.
You’ve got to be quick
to capture river otters
with your camera.
Appearing, disappearing
through plants on water’s surface.
It’s been a long time
since these two injured eagles
soared Florida’s skies
American flag above ,
they watch as life passes by.
In the wintertime,
marine fish, like manatees,
migrate to hot springs.
Manatees and marine fish
thrive in seas and fresh water.
Florida bobcats
now coexist with humans
in suburbia.
Florida panthers, pride of
Florida, are endangered.
Flamingos in the tropical bird area. Photo by Ellen Maher.
Sparkling waters flow
through green paradise,
home of tropical birds.
Pink flamingos and spoonbills,
night herons, and sleeping swans.
Endangered red wolves
roam a spacious enclosure,
delighting humans.
Procreation their purpose…
red wolf repopulation.
Alligators live
in a pond that’s metal fenced…
Visitors are safe.
Prehistoric predators…
fearsome reptiles captivate.
Handsome black vultures
choose to live at the preserve…
welcome scavengers!
Perching on the hippo’s back,
they eat insects, then share his food.
Grandfathered from days
when exotic animals
were in residence.
Citizen of Florida,
world’s oldest captive hippo.
Most animals here
are unable to survive
living on their own.
Protected, they now serve
as ambassadors of wildlife.
Rare, endangered squirrel now unable to live in the wild because it was illegally raised in captivity. Photo by Ellen Maher.
Copyright© 2021 by Cheryl Batavia
For more information:
floridastateparks.org
Find a Park:
Ellie Schiller Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park
During the summer, manatees
wander widely in warm seas.
Manatees throw fall and winter parties
in warm springs near seventy degrees.
Hundreds of manatees socialize in Kings Bay
near Three Sisters Springs on November days.
These marine mammals enjoy each other’s company.
They don’t compete for territory.
Vegetarians, they live on sea grass…
How peacefully, how gracefully their days pass!
Nursing calves swim beside their mothers.
They have no predators, no fear of others.
Though manatees bear the scars
of encounters with boat propellers,
they still seek humans as their playmates.
Snuggles and belly rubs are appreciated.
As I climbed down the boat ladder,
a manatee waited in the water.
A thousand pounds of curiosity
and sweet manatee eyes greeted me.
The moment we came face to face,
I knew there was hope for the human race.
At that moment it was clear to me
that people could learn from manatees.
How happy life would be
if we could live in harmony
with nature and our fellow creatures.
Manatees are charming teachers!
West Indian Manatees are endangered marine mammals whose closest relatives are elephants. They require a minimum water temperature of sixty-eight degrees. Interestingly, they have no front teeth, only molars for chewing tough sea grass. They swim gracefully at speeds up to 20 miles per hour. At 1,000 to 1,200 pounds, they have no natural enemies, but many are injured by propellers of fast-moving boats. Boaters can protect manatees by observing posted speed limits in manatee areas.
Personnel at Kings Bay in Crystal River tag and monitor injured manatees. They are transported to a manatee rescue center in Homosassa Springs for rehabilitation if they are unable to recover on their own.
Florida has numerous hot springs where manatees spend the Fall and Winter months. Kings Bay has a constant year-round temperature of sixty-eight degrees and some manatees are year-round residents there. Other springs may be a little warmer, about seventy-two degrees.
When you swim with the manatees, you are instructed not to disturb resting manatees. As you would get to know a strange cat, you should let them approach you. Ellen had a manatee hug her arm. A manatee wanted Katey to pet it and give it a belly rub. One manatee swam up against me, and another manatee put its nose against my mask and gazed into my eyes. These are moments we will always remember!
Manatees have been called “sea cows” because they graze on sea grass and other aquatic plants. Very lonely mariners in the early days are said to have mistaken them for mermaids. There is another species of manatee in Africa.
Copyright© 2021 by Cheryl Batavia
For more information about swimming with manatees and boat tours, you can contact:
http://www.PlantationOnCrystalRiver.com
floridamanateeadventures.com
Mable Ringling’s wagon wheel-shaped rose garden has approximately 1,250 antique roses, many from the 17th and 18th centuries, and is surrounded by statues of courting couples.
The sixty-six-acre estate has numerous other gardens and several museums. We spent about half a day exploring the mansion and the Circus Museum on this trip. Multiple galleries feature priceless circus memorabilia. There are elaborately hand-carved and painted antique circus wagons, calliopes, gorgeous vintage costumes made of silk and embroidered with faux gems, old circus photos, and informative and entertaining videos.
There is a 31-gallery art museum famous for its world class collection of old masters. Besides its permanent collections, the art museum hosts various exhibits. I have visited the art museum several times in the past. You could easily spend a day there. There is also an historic theater which hosts live performances.
Katey takes a selfie in front of one of the fourteen banyan trees on the estate, a gift from Thomas Edison, who raised several types of banyan trees at his winter estate in Fort Myers, Florida. In the photo: Katey, Cheryl, and Ellen.
Unless stated otherwise, photos in this post were taken by Katey Batavia and Ellen Maher.
A scene from the Howard Brothers Model Circus, which recreates an early 20th century circus. Howard Tibbals, a retired circus performer, created the 44,000-piece display by hand over a fifty-year period. The display occupies 3,800 square feet in the museum.
Multiple acts took place simultaneously under the big top.
Animal acts and the menagerie allowed many people to see exotic animals for the first time.
A circus parking lot filled with beautifully-crafted vintage cars. Schools and businesses shut down on circus day so that people for miles around could attend the circus.
I’ll join the circus!
A ringmaster in top hat
and tails, I will say…
“Ladies and gentlemen! Children
of all ages! Welcome!”
I’ll join the circus,
ride an elephant bareback,
and teach bears to dance.
Lions and tigers will purr
when I crack my whip and grin!
I’ll join the circus,
a goofy clown…folks laughing,
watching me fall down.
I’ll honk my red nose, driving
crazy in my tiny car!
I’ll join the circus!
Wearing flashy spangled tights,
I’ll walk the high wire,
and catch flying girls from my
high trapeze…Crowds will go wild!
I’ll join the circus
and see the world from a train…
each day, a new town!
I’ll come home for vacation…
fish all day…eat Mom’s peach pie.
Copyright© 2021 by Cheryl Batavia
Upcoming posts will feature more adventures from our travels during Thanksgiving week. It was so good to see my daughters again, and we had a fabulous time!
For more information about The Ringling Museum, visit their website, ringling.org
Hanukkah menorah lights burn bright.
Just one candle is lit on the first night,
two on the second, three on the third…
On the last night, all eight are burned!
Spin the dreidels…Their message is clear:
“A great miracle happened here!”
Tell the Hanukkah story, please,
of Jerusalem reclaimed by the Maccabees.
In Jerusalem, the temple’s rededication
was cause for joyous celebration.
They had enough oil to burn for only one day…
but for eight days, the temple lamps blazed!
Bring out the latkes, sing the songs.
Hanukkah celebrations are eight days long!
Love of religious freedom is heartfelt,
holiday memories as sweet as Hanukkah gelt!
Copyright© 2021 by Cheryl Batavia
The events commemorated by Hanukkah occurred about 167 BCE. The history of the period is very complex, but well worth learning more about. I especially like the story of Judith, a spy who helped win the war to reclaim Jerusalem. Hanukkah is generally viewed today as a celebration of religious freedom.
For a poem about Hanukkah as celebrated by our family when our children were young, see “Eighth Night of Hanukkah.” https://gulfcoastpoet.com/2020/12/02/eighth-night-of-hanukkah/
by Ellen Maher
We pilgrims are thankful
For what you have brought us
We were strangers in a land that was not our home
With your help we have made it
Through the barren winters
We know in the cold to come, we’re not alone.
I thank you for what you have done
I thank you for the rain and the sun
I thank you for the seeds to sow
I thank you for the way you make it all grow
We pilgrims are thankful
For the foods that feed us
For the time to be together
The harvest is here now
And the food is gathered
You have made us ready for any kind of weather
I thank you for what you have done
I thank you for the rain and the sun
I thank you for the seeds to sow
I thank you for the way you make it all grow
LN Maher
©1996 Echoes of the Lion’s Roar
My daughters, Ellen Maher and Katey Batavia will be visiting over the Thanksgiving week, November 21-27. I am so excited to see them for the first time in almost two years! I will be off WordPress to spend some time with them. A swim with the manatees at Crystal River is planned. It was canceled last time because of Covid 19. We are eagerly looking forward to the trip.
The poem above was written by Ellen. She is an ordained Baptist chaplain and a teacher and administrator in a recovery program that deals with issues such as grief, addiction, and illness. She also volunteers for many special projects at her church. This year she helped to produce a video for a virtual Vacation Bible School during the pandemic. Ellen writes religious poems on her blog, Echoes of the Lion’s Roar.
Happy Thanksgiving!
A barefoot wanderer on the sands of time,
moment to moment, no reason or rhyme,
searching for a message in a bottle along the shoreline,
but pebbles on the beach were all I could find.
Looking for the light of my life, year after year,
I sang along with the music of the spheres,
seeking someone to sing with me as we embark,
two-by-two onto an archetypical ark.
I rowed my small boat…on dry land I planted my feet.
Miracle of miracles, soon we were dancing cheek-to-cheek!
All was bright where once were darkness and strife.
I smiled at you, the light of my life!
From each rising sun to the next rising sun,
on top of the world, under the gun,
or tossed by capricious seas, we’ve had a good run.
We’ve sailed life together, and it’s been fun!
Hand-in-hand on the beach we walk as before;
a message in a bottle washes up on the shore.
With hearts aflutter and chaos of mind,
we uncork the bottle, unsettled by what we find.
With the music of the spheres our hearts are attuned,
but the message in the bottle portends impending doom.
It says, “Tis a short voyage from cradle to tomb.”
We face an epic tidal wave…The end has come so soon!
Copyright© 2021 by Cheryl Batavia
Gulf Coast Poet 