(Cheryl Batavia’s daughters, Ellen and Katey, meet Skipper, the bottle-nosed dolphin, and his trainer.)
getting to know all about you.Getting to like you,
(belly rub)
getting to hope you like me!You are precisely my cup of tea!
(It’s not polite to stick out your tongue.)
Getting to know you. Suddenly, I’m bright and breezybecause of all the beautiful new thingsI’m learning about you!Getting to know you,knowing we know how to play!Getting to know you.
(Ellen playing the piano, Skipper singing!)
Things I’m learning about you, Day by Day!
(Katey playing the piano, Skipper singing!)
Cuddle Up a Little Closer
Cuddle up a little closer, Lovey mine!Cuddle up and be my little clinging vine!I like to feel your cheeks so rosy.I like to make you comfy, cozy,I love you, I love you so muchfrom your head down to your toesies, Lovey mine!
Photos taken by a Theater of the Sea photographer. Please give credit if you use them.
This is a highlight of the vacation my daughters and I planned together. Due to a last minute emergency, I was unable to go on the trip. These photos make me feel like I was there.
Theater of the Sea in Islamorada, FL has various animals, many of them rescue animals, on display. There are sea turtles, rays, seals, and other animals to observe or encounter.
I hope you enjoy the vintage music. I also considered “Splish Splash!” by Bobby Darren. It didn’t quite fit, but it was fun!
My two daughters, Ellen and Katey, live in Dallas. We have missed our traditional yearly road trip for the last two years due to my illness. This year, we are taking the long-awaited trip to the southern part of Everglades National Park. I am hoping to see the wild flamingos that mysteriously settled there twenty years ago. Some people say they came from South America.
Flamingos had not lived in the wild in Florida for the previous one hundred and fifty years. I have dreamed of seeing these wild flamingos since I first heard about them . Maybe it will happen!
Before we leave, at the request of my younger daughter Katey, we will have an Easter egg hunt. I am filling plastic eggs with small chocolate bunnies, jelly beans, and some goofy little surprises. I will hide hide the eggs in the yard for Katey and Ellen to find. This is the first Easter I have spent with my daughters for many years, and I am looking forward to it!
Katey has also asked me to get a favorite ice cream that is not available in Texas. It is cherry ice cream with chococolate-covered cherry hearts mixed in. We will try to eat small portions!
My daughters are going kayaking. We are taking two boat tours, one in the Gulf of Mexico, and one in the back country.
Then, we are going to the Florida Keys to swim with the dolphins at Theater of the Sea. There are many other marine animals there, including sea turtles, seals, sharks, and rays.
We plan to eat some authentic Cuban food, locally grown tropical fruit, and some famous Key Lime pie. I will post photos and tell you all about our adventures when we return.
I will be on break from April 15-30, 2025.
Katey, Ellen, and Cheryl on our road trip several years ago.
Last September, recently discharged from the hospital and recovering from quintuple bypass heart surgery, I had very limited energy. Robert’s birthday was in a few days. I always write poems and make cards for him for his birthday and Valentine’s Day. “Well, I think I can write a haiku, at least!” I decided.
My recovery includes a daily walking program. Because of Robert’s COPD, post-polio, heart problems, and other issues, Robert can now only walk short distances. Many times he walks a short way with me, and I continue the walk on my own.
Having Robert walk with me brings me happiness and encouragement. This is the poem I wrote for Robert’s birthday and printed out on white copy paper…no handmade card this time. I put it on his computer keyboard where he would find it when he woke.
I was hospitalized again in November to stent two of the grafts that had become blocked. By Valentine’s Day, though, a longer poem and a handmade card were back! Robert keeps all of the cards I make in his office. He even kept this haiku printed out on plain white paper…and I keep all the cards he has ever given me!
New fallen Snow in the forest. Photo used by permission of the photographer.My daughters, Katey and Ellen, and their dogs. Vibes and Rez. Photo by Katey Batavia.Here today, gone tomorrow! A cute snowman made by Ellen and Katey.
Yay, Snow! Photo of Katey Batavia by Eve Ellen Maher
Farewell to Snow!
So long, Snow! Bye-bye!
It was great while it lasted…
We had so much fun!
Let’s all play again next year…
Spring’s just around the corner!
Spring Snowdrops. Photo by Dustin Humes from Unsplash
Early Signs of Springon the SW Gulf Coast of Florida
Last night, on our lanai, I heard the music of crickets and tree frogs. This morning, I saw a live oak tree in bloom, its golden tassels gleaming in the warm sunshine.
Fall arrives around the New Year here, and spring begins in February. Summers are hot and rainy, with temperatures almost never above 95 degrees. From June to October is hurricane season.
Winters are mild and sunny with little rain, and our population swells with “snowbirds,” people who spend the winters here. We generally have a handful of cold days in January, but it doesn’t snow. Most years, it doesn’t freeze.
I have been on an extended break due to health issues. This poem was written in early August to mark my 75th birthday. I wanted to share my birthday poem on WordPress at that time, but I knew I still wasn’t quite up to blogging.
When I went to my cardiologist, I was told that I was healthy and didn’t need to go through routine tests this year. I had experienced an extremely mild heart attack 18 years earlier and had years of good test results after that. I had no reason to suspect that anything much was wrong with my heart.
Ten days later, after several days of horrible “indigestion,” I ended up in the emergency room with a massive heart attack. On August 26, I had quintuple heart bypass surgery. I had spent twelve days in the hospital.
Women have different heart attack symptoms from men and often experience heart attacks as “indigestion.” Unfortunately, that can delay going to the emergency room, allowing the problems to get worse. That was my experience. It is practically impossible to distinguish heart attack symptoms from indigestion. Even the emergency room once misdiagnosed me with indigestion after 3 hours of monitoring and intensive tests.We must never be embarrassed to go to the emergency room with chest pain, even if it turns out to be just indigestion!
Robert and I both have multiple health challenges, and we look out for each other, but this time, we were both quite ill at the same time. Ill as Robert was, he made me a salad the day I came home from the hospital. Thank you, Robert!
My two wonderful daughters came from their home in Dallas for a week and took excellent care of me. I did the walking I was supposed to do, and for a while, my recovery was going well. The typical recovery time from open heart surgery is about eight weeks and is very intensive.
After a couple of months though, I started feeling ill and ended up in the emergency room again. Two of the five grafts in my heart were 100% blocked, and I had to have them stented. I was in the hospital for four days this time and slept in a reclining chair because I was unable to lie down without chest pain until after the angioplasty.
I felt very tired and weak for several weeks after that, but my energy has begun to return. Some days are better than others. I am building up my walking distance again. Today was a warm, sunny day, and I walked outside for thirty minutes.
Even though I am not quite up to speed yet, I miss my blogging friends terribly. I may not be able to post often or read posts and comment as much as I would like. Please be patient with me, and know that you mean a great deal to me.
Thank you to those who inquired about my health while I was on break and those who wished me well.
Soon I will report on some ongoing projects I have been working on.
A belated Happy New Year! May 2025 bring you and your family good health, happiness, and success! ❤️
Gulf Coast Poet 