Category Archives: peace

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Heaven and hell

Hell is other people. Heaven too.
How much do you adjust for this person?
The one who is only available when I am damaged
a foul weather friend, unexpected,
busy with all the damaged around,
never time to play. This one hides much
and slips into denial like a familiar cloak.
I am sad. That one talks about others, ah, gossip
I hate it. This one has a blind spot I could
drive a truck through. I wonder why? I am curious.
I read that women are still expected to be responsible
for the house. They are praised or blamed if the home
appears perfect or a mess. I am clearing my main floor
to resemble this idea of what a house should look like
but reading that I wonder. Is it worth it? My decor
is packrat cat lady, though only two cats. No self respecting
burgler would come in as they would trip and fall,
over cats or stuff. Stuff on the stairs: I don’t care
and know that at 65 I will be counseled in my “free”
medicare wellness visit, that I’ve paid for through
all my working years, to make sure my house is uncluttered
reducing fall risk. Hell is other people and heaven too.

For the Ragtag Daily Prompt: hell.

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Stitch

I like to play with word cliches
Geraniums red and chrysanthemums white
As I wander busy through my day
Delphiniums blue, all are dark at night
Least said, soonest mended
Except for murder, rape and pillage
Loose lips sink ships, war ended
Sinner gossip round the village
Time will mend a broken heart
A stitch in time will save nine
You’ll never finish if you don’t start
Mend that heart and change the rhyme
Absence makes the heart grow fonder
Your love grows daily, what a wonder

For the Ragtag Daily Prompt: absence.

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Paw tuck

I have two desks on my main floor, and use both. Sol Duc likes the office desk and Elwha likes the other one. Sol Duc tucks herself under the lamp. I think the paw tuck position radiates peace.

I hope it radiates all over the world.

For the Ragtag Daily Prompt: radiate.

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Peace Plague

If I can be anything I want to be
today let me be a peace plague.

Let me be a peace plague, airborne,
spread fast in the air
just a breath of wind
two neighbors who are angry stand at a fence
one drops a rake, the other a hose
they stare at each other. “Come to tea,”
says one, and the other comes.
Someone stops writing a letter of complaint
and gathers blankets for the warming center instead.
A policeman aims at a kid with a gun
shouts “Freeze.” and then he freezes too
on an intaken breath, and the kid drops the gun
hands up, breathing my plague.
And in a war zone, one side chokes on the air
and stops firing. The other aims and stops as well.
Both fall to their knees and weep. After time,
some get up and start gathering the wounded. Others
tear sheets into bandages and yet others start moving the rubble
finding the bodies. The bodies must be found and buried
in holy ground before rebuilding. My cousin
opens her mouth to gossip again and inhales and chokes
and stops. She says something other than she had planned.
Peace spreads like a wave, like a plague, and everyone
looks for someone to help.

If I can be anything I want to be
today I want to be a plague of peace.

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Growth

I am with eklastic: the Ragtag Daily Prompt has been an island of peace and friendship and joy over the last year.

The trunk is from the US Botanic Gardens: wisteria, I think. This is an example of complicated growth. Are we closer to peace and helping each other and is ChatGPT aiding world peace and harmony? Hmmm.

A creative use for a fence:

My parents had Lovin’ Spoonful albums. I had glasses by fourth grade and loved this song. I thought it was funny.

For the Ragtag Daily Prompt: looking back.

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Stockings

The stockings are ready!

This is from last year. I forgot to bring my stocking this year. I will have to use a sock! Well, Santa will surely understand.

My ex says happy chanakwanschristmasfeliznavidad. All one word. And love, joy and peace to you and yours too.

For the Ragtag Daily Prompt: holiday.

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Delicate

I think of what is delicate in all our wide wild world
Our world itself? Yes, but more. Peace among people? No, peace
is strong as war, peace lifts my heart and roars, hoping others hear.
Most delicate is the human heart, all humans. Covid has damaged
the human hearts, we fear, we grieve, we stress and lash out
and so we go to war and wars and argue with each other.
Human hearts turn outward, we cannot see the virus and feel helpless
as the subtle battle is fought and doctors and nurses and scientists
research and die. Human hearts want an enemy they can see, they can fight
and what is better than another human? Every human is different
so there are many choices, to fight over the differences. Let us stop.
Gather our wounded, clear the rubble, find the dead and bury them.
Let us stop and cry and weep and tear our hair.
Let us mourn as a world our dead and the damage to the human heart.

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For the Ragtag Daily Prompt: delicate.