Do More
There is a voice that says, “Do more, do more”
and that these things should all be done by now.
This voice would be so easy to ignore
if its lie weren’t also true somehow.
Some Things New
This computer that I type on
will not always be mine.
Like all machines like this,
it belongs more to a time.
But we can stretch its life,
or rather, we can stretch its use,
with some things new– a trackpad
and a battery with more juice.
Start
My list of things to do today
is long but not quite done.
I need to add “start” to the list–
this task’s the hardest one.
Story
Prairie Home Companion
is my companion
as I drive home across the prairie.
At church they asked where I’m from
and I said where I live
but isn’t there more to everyone’s story?
In Lake Wobegon,
all the women are strong,
and I’m sure they’ve lived there their whole lives.
But even up there,
life is not always fair
or simple enough to be summarized.
Strong North Wind
Face the strong north wind
and just keep pedaling.
As long as your feet move
your wheels will spin.
The fastest lose all feeling
in their frozen legs and feet.
The fact that you keep going
means you’ll win.
Not Just Nice
Oh, let me not be like today,
sunshine spread across my face,
but with a heart as cold as ice.
Let me be loving, not just nice.
First Things First
First things first,
pick the thing that is worst
and change it.
Then do what’s next,
but don’t change what’s best.
Just rearrange it.
Funds
At the zoo, there are jars with signs
filled with coins and fives and ones
to help animals not go extinct
since dinosaurs died of lack of funds.
Spring Inside
Spring smells like my college town, the last place I smelled spring,
and it’s like I’m in Kentucky in the morning when birds sing,
and the breeze is Colorado with the window open wide,
and now I realize how much spring I’ve bottled up inside.
Happy Birthday, Daughter
I just haven’t been myself this year.
I can’t think like I used to.
It’s true, I haven’t been just myself.
My precious daughter has been here,
filling my arms,
making me think of someone
other than myself.
She entered the world in the middle of the night.
We learned her face by the morning light.
It’s been a year since that sudden day,
and I just haven’t been myself.
