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Striving

Leaving the serenity of the womb at birth,

we strive all our days upon the earth.

Babbling syllables, learning to talk,

clinging to furniture, learning to walk.

Studying hard to get good reports,

practicing endlessly to excel in sports.

At the library borrowing a book.

In the kitchen learning to cook.

At the mall shopping for formal dress;

going to the prom, we want to impress.

Rigorous program at our chosen college

to optimize our skills and knowledge.

Preparing for the race to be run,

getting ready for our place in the sun.

Finding a paragon to share our life,

a partnership of husband and wife.

Striving endlessly to make a living,

bringing up responsible offspring.

Saving money for when we retire,

making a will in case we expire.

Visiting a spa to regain our youth,

Time with grandchildren, sharing our truth.

Appointments with doctors, seeking a cure,

Diets and exercise we endure.

Enjoying photos from the past,

remembering moments from first to last.

Then comes the day our striving is done…

We journey peacefully into the unknown.

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Copyright© 2021 by Cheryl Batavia

Blog, Here I Come!

Second vaccine shot.

Fever, next day spent sleeping,

a few lazy days.

New prescription

with dramatic side effects

from three half-doses.

Days spent researching

dietary strategies,

drug alternatives.

No time for learning

how to use the new smart phone…

drinking cabbage juice!

Fighting frustration…

painting for relaxation…

Nothing I will post!

Blogging difficult…

computer going haywire.

Locked out of emails!

Done trouble-shooting

with scammers online…Today,

it’s Apple Pie Tech!

Equanimity!

Technology overhauled.

Blogging, here I come!

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Copyright© 2021 by Cheryl Batavia

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I missed all of you! 🙂

I have had trouble commenting for several days, and then got locked out of my email. My WordPress seems to be working normally again. I am feeling better and glad to be back!

I hope you are well. Stay safe and be happy! ❤

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Day at the River

Glowing sunrise…

Going to the river.

Blowing breezes,

flowing water…

Floating downstream .

Slowing the pace,

growing mindful,

knowing serenity.

Glowing sunset…

Going home in peace.

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Copyright© 2021 by Cheryl Batavia

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Thank you to My WordPress Family

500+ Subscribers

Your support and encouragement mean the world to me! You have helped me to get through these dark days of the pandemic, the isolation, and the health issues. WordPress bloggers are talented, inspiring, kind, and helpful…friends who have treated me like family! You are appreciated!

Kritika of “Valorous Bird”, thank you for discovering my website and encouraging me to start my blog. I will always remember.

My first post was on June 18, 2020, and this is post number 112. As of today, I have 505 subscribers. Thank you all!

Love,

Cheryl

❤ ❤ ❤

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Grande Dame of Peace River

Classic arches…

time marches…

Soulless and faceless

utilitarian bridge replaces

grande dame’s graces.

Bridges side-by-side,

span Arcadia’s scenic pride,

Peace River, tannin-dyed,

where fierce alligators reside.

Now pedestrians on a lark

linger in Peace River Park

on the bridge, historic landmark,

viewing kayakers in waters dark.

Grande dame retains her spark!

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Copyright© 2021 by Cheryl Batavia

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This historic bridge over the scenic Peace River in Arcadia, Florida holds fond memories for me. My father used to fish in the Peace River when I was a child, and our family vacationed in Florida. The Peace River flows into the Gulf of Mexico not too far from where we live now. Robert and I have walked along the river at Arcadia a number of times. Last year, my daughters and I took a breathtaking boat tour on the river near Arcadia.

Arcadia is a town that once had a fine train station and an opera house. Many historic buildings are now home to restaurants and antique shops. Mary Margaret’s Tea Room is one of Robert’s and my favorite restaurants located in an historic auto dealership and garage and furnished with antiques.

It is a tradition to go to Mary Margaret’s on my birthday, missed for the last year two years because of the pandemic. The restaurant has changed hands since the pandemic began. We want to visit again after it is over. I hope they still have our favorite crab Louis, quiche Lorraine, turkey sandwiches, flavored tea, and tea biscuits!

I have attempted to paint the old Peace River bridge several times over the last couple of years, but I could never quite capture my feelings for the place. I will try again, and post it if I get it right.

This poem is a Ziggurat, a form created by Paul Szlosek and presented by Eugenia at Eugenia’s Causerie. It consists of 14 lines and 4 stanzas. 2 lines, 2 words each, 3 lines, 3 words each, 4 lines, 4 words each, and 5 lines, 5 words each. The rhyme pattern is aa, bbb, cccc, ddddd. This was a fun form to work with.

Ode to a Glass Jar

Grandma

fills her pantry

with Mason jar delights:

preserves, piccalilli, peaches…

Oh my!

Photo from Pexels-Pixabay

Dad saves

baby food jars

for nails, screws, nuts, and bolts.

He can fix anything that breaks.

Thanks, Dad!

Teacher

brings a jar of

sweet cream for us to shake

until we have butter for our

crackers.

Suzy

saves her loose change

in a pickle jar bank,

hidden with her socks. Shh…It’s a

secret!

Sonny

whistles a tune,

nightcrawlers in a jar,

cane pole on his shoulder…going

fishing.

Grandpa

likes leftovers

stored in reused glass jars.

They go straight in the microwave…

Yummy!

Black-Eyed Susans, Photo by Autumn Mott Rodhea from Unsplash

Auntie’s

filling a jar

with bright black-eyed Susans

for a neighbor who’s under the

weather.

Jamal

brings a jar of

tadpoles for the fish tank.

His class will watch them growing legs…

Yay, frogs!

Photo by Mel Poole from Unsplash

Artist

rinses brushes

in a jar of water.

Clean colors make a beautiful

painting.

Photo by Fran Hogan from Unsplash

Uncle

loves to eat out…

barbecue…iced tea

in Mason jars. Nostalgia’s

not cheap!

Photo by Katarzyna Modrzej from Pexels

Mama

plants moss and ferns

in a big gallon jar,

creating a terrarium…

Lovely!

Fireflies, photo by Tengyart from Unsplash

Jenny

catches fireflies.

They twinkle in a jar.

Bedtime, Jenny! Good night, fireflies!

Fly free.

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Copyright© 2021 by Cheryl Batavia

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Think of all the marvelous ways to reuse glass jars!

Unlike plastics, they are nontoxic for storing and reheating food.

If you can’t use any more glass jars,

you can recycle them and keep them out of landfills.

An unexamined life is not worth Living–Socrates

This quote, as described in Plato’s Apology, is from the trial of Socrates, where he was convicted of “corrupting the youth” of Athens. Socrates believed so strongly in his philosophy that he chose the punishment of death rather than exile, and died by drinking poison hemlock. The “Socratic Method” teaches by asking questions and is still used today.

This poem contrasts the “unexamined life” in the first half of the palindrome with the “examined life” in the second half of the palindrome. I believe that we should not drift through life, accepting conventional wisdom without question. We should take responsibility for our own lives by asking the difficult questions to discover our true purpose. A purposeful life is meaningful and is in service to others.

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Identity Crisis

Purpose of life?

Lassitude banishes purpose.

Here am I. Why am I?

Obscurity supersedes clarity.

Anxiety outpaces curiosity.

Crisis of identity.

Randomness overpowers intention.

Why wonder?

Complexity of world…

Perplexing!

World of complexity.

Wonder why…

Intention overpowers randomness.

Identity of crisis.

Curiosity outpaces anxiety.

Clarity supersedes obscurity.

I am why. I am here.

Purpose banishes lassitude.

Life of purpose.

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Copyright© 2021 by Cheryl Batavia

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A Palindrome Poem.

There is a central word.

The first half and the second half of the poem

are mirror images of each other.

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Lost & Alone

Lost and alone you are now!

Destination unexplored.

Light becomes darkness,

day becomes night.

Friendship unanticipated,

unfounded fears…

companions are strangers!

Shared experience,

shared fire and food.

Seen and heard…

Empathy.

Heard and seen,

food and fire shared,

experience shared.

Strangers are companions…

fears unfounded,

unanticipated friendship!

Night becomes day,

darkness becomes light.

Unexplored destination…

Now are you alone and lost?

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Copyright© 2021 by Cheryl Batavia

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This is my first attempt at writing a palindrome poem. My thanks to David, at Ben Alexander for his explanation of his method for writing a palindrome and for his encouragement.

Our best days still lie ahead. Together we will choose hope over fear, unity over division, and truth over lies.

Joe Biden

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United We Stand

We Americans are a strong people.

We will reclaim our democracy

and restore the American dream.

“Equal…under the law,”

“endowed…with…unalienable rights…

life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,”

“a government of laws, not of men.”

“United we stand, divided we fall…”

United we stand.

Please see the sources for the quotes used in this poem at the end of the post.

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Copyright© 2021 by Cheryl Batavia

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Pledge of Allegiance

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

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Sources of Quotes in the Poem, “United We Stand”

“Equal Justice under the Law” adapted from the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution. Inscribed on the front of the US Supreme Court building.

“endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” President Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence.

“government of laws, not of men” President John Adams

“United we stand, divided we fall.” Origin unknown. Motto of the State of Kentucky