Snow Cats

I think we’ve managed to break another ceiling

We’ve been snowbirds for seven years.

Our relatives, unnamed, followed suit two years ago.

This year, they chauffeured their two cats to experience the Sunshine State’s warmth and tropical breezes.

In less than two days, the two males have staked out their territory.

Now,  cats reign over the snowbirds in two locations.

The takeover was swift, and collateral damage minimal.

The dominant male keeps a short daily agenda:

1.   Beach party

2.   Hunt local birds

3.   Attend Spring Training in Fort Myers

4.   Shorebird BBQ 

 

 We are grateful for small mercies. The list is brief. Plus, something we recently hatched is brewing. 

 

Easter Sunday

 

Awake

predawn sunrise

partly cloudy with a 

huge chance of rabbits hopping by.

Easter.

 

 

Lettuce

pray together

for chocolate to dictate

 bunnies hop, and bees buzz

and fighting stops on planet Earth 

worldwide.

 

Holy

He is Risen

accept the commandment

be kind to your neighbors these times

daily.

 

 

 

"A Cinquain is a short, usually unrhymed poem consisting of twenty-two syllables distributed as 2, 4, 6, 8, 2, in five lines. It was developed by the Imagist poet Adelaide Crapsey."…

 

We Are Astronauts

Talk about breaking the glass ceiling

They do not want to be recognized as women or female astronauts

They are astronauts, period.

They have jobs from the Ground Up

Some are from the Military

Some are Mission Commanders and pilot astronauts

Some are mission specialists and spacewalkers

There are women of color, of various races and creeds.

MD’s and PhD’s

Brilliant minds all.

 

Sally Ride was the first

Christina Koch- 1^st on Artemis mission around the moon.

61 + 6 new trainees

On missions

Since 1978

Trailblazing

Inspired and Empowered.

There are record holders:

For Most Flights, Most Time in Space

Longest Stay in Space, Most Spacewalks, and Longest Spacewalk.

YES, We Can.

Lunar Launch Party

 

 I used to have parties

Back in Hawaii

They were hurricane parties

Bottoms up parties

To alleviate the worry parties

Stock up, slow down, and gratitude parties

 

A few-- bring everything inside parties

Sedate the Great Danes for New Year’s parties

Church fellowship parties

Aerobic Ministry parties

A memorable 40^th Birthday party.

No time for the blues parties

 

Sail Away parties

Marathon running parties

Launching Book parties

Making my first Art sale parties.

Pen Women parties

Hiking milestone parties.

 

Dinners

Luncheons

Even breakfast parties.

Sons, stepsons, and stepdaughters’ yearly Birthday parties

I used to have parties

Now, I go to parties.

The point is to celebrate every minute of every day 

because life is a gift when you’re rich with friends and family.  

Cos, Can, Can

And No Can, No Can

Besides, time is fleeting, smarty. 

Tony The Spelunker

 

I had done an excellent job

of prepping.  The camera was on standby,

the compressor

humming, the propofol was dripping.

 

I counted backwards from 100

And soon I slipped into my alter ego

Gina, the caver.

Sixty-one, athletic,

well-proportioned, and mostly tan.

 

Gina followed the prompt set by the anesthesiologist, whose name she still can’t remember.

He said,” Dream about Tony the Spelunker.”

Tony was forty-five, had a six-pack, and loved shiny dark passageways.

 

Gina relaxed, and soon Tony appeared 

She showed Tony her headlamp

Tony was sporting his new dive watch 

with fully charged gas tritium tubes. 

 

Tony and Gina 

went spelunking through a remote section of the tunnel,

where several sulfurous geysers 

had freshly erupted, 

in search of polyps

and other strange outgrowths.

Tony was amazed at the colors of the stalagmites and stalactites inside the wet cave.  He used his watch to make his way through the tiny pathway and searched for the perfect place to unpack and share his potato skins. Tony and Gina laughed and talked, and soon it was time for Gina to wake up. 

 

She was still smiling when the Doctor asked if she was okay to stand up. She nodded, waved, and blew a kiss at Tony before she left. His watch blinked once in response. They had promised to meet again in about ten years. 

 

 

©Cornelia DeDona 4/2/26

 

 

 To The Psychologist Who Pins Tails 

on Unsuspecting Patients While 

Blindfolded

 

 

I muse on the rush 

of hope, pain, and possibility. And to sum it up in five words seems

mind-numbingly sparse. But that is the nature of this task.

So, I slide my perspective carefully up for your review.

 

Brain imaging can save lives. Seeing matters.

Brains can heal.

 

Call me divergent. I like to use tools.

I am a Libra. I like balance in my brain. 

 

 Besides, a mere phrase would not suffice or

elicit the right melody. Hallmark cards evoked strong memories. 

Before, my hopes were dashed by skilled care. And replaced by an eternal 

doubt that lay at length on your soft couch. 

 

Still, here we are. Digging up the past, specifically

a deer frozen in the headlights, while the future stays dark. 

Blindfolded and grasping for answers, we pin the tail and call it healing.  

 

Let’s face it. 

It will take years to lift the weight that binds him. 

And I am tasked with five measly adjectives to capture his wit. 

Even as our world frays—from farce to poisoned water. 

 

No Kings

  

No Kings

To bow before

The roar is compelling

The horns, the traffic, the people 

Chanting.

 

Peaceful

Composed Protest

Against unchecked power

Resistance becomes nationwide

Duty. 

 

Oppose

The regime

The planned takeover

Loss of freedoms and injustice

Symbol.