EMBRACED BY MOTHER'S HANDS - "A Simple Sunday" Piece

Artist: Sharonlee


EMBRACED BY MOTHER'S HANDS

Hands still reaching
across the miles
and many years,
still cradling my heart
and easing all my fears;
hands wiping away the tears
almost before they begin to fall,
I still feel my mother's hands,
so very patient and strong.

And on this Mother's Day
as every year before,
I still feel my mother's hands
guiding me along the way,
a hand of sweet encouragement
a tender pat on the back;
whenever I begin to feel down,
my mother's hands are there
to lift my spirits,
to buoy me back up.

So to this day
and after so many years,
all the way from Heaven above,
I feel my mother's loving touch
upon my heart and soul,
and because of her
and through her hands,
I can face and embrace
all those yesterdays
as living within
these todays of mine
those hands still lift me up
with the promise and hope,
touching my heart
when I least expect it,
but when I need it the most.

(c) barbara kausteklis 5-13-12
Mother's Day 2012

Written for "A Simple Sunday"
this week featuring the art of Sharonlee.

http://www.friendburst.com/blog/88668/simple-sunday-sharonlee-2/

TWO FEET OF HAPPINESS

In celebration of FEET . . . .

A bit of fun with feet
in a rather Dr. Seuss-ish way.





TWO FEET OF HAPPINESS

Oh the people you meet
and the great fun you’ll have
when you head out the door
and use your two feet.
They’ll take you wherever
you’d ever want to go
when you open the door wide
and just take a step outside.
One foot in front of the other
then two steps, then three.
It will be so much fun,
just you wait and see.

There’s no need to dress fancy
or to put on high heels;
barefoot will do just fine
depending on how you feel.
Just go as you are,
open the door
and step outside;
your feet will be happy
and you’ll be smiling inside.
Your feet will be ecstatic,
and jumping with glee,
running here
and running there
and running everywhere
for there’s just
so much to see.

So open the door
and explore what’s outside;
just a few steps to start
and you’ll certainly see
how happy you
and your two feet
can possibly be.

(c) barbara kausteklis 5-11-12

Written for the Friday Fling/
"The Friday Fling Fetes Feet Seuss-Style."
http://www.friendburst.com/blog/88378/friday-fling-fetes-feet-seuss-style/

WITHIN FRIENDSHIP'S FLAME -- Blogophilia 11.5

Blogophilia week 11.5 - "Ashes to Starlight"

Bonus Points:

(Hard, 2pts): give an excuse you would use to get out of a ticket (i.e., traffic, speeding, running red light)
(Easy, 1pt): have a Blogophiliac place their hand on another Blogo's knee

Final date to post BLOG: May 12, 2012 - Saturday, midnight Pacific Time

Final date to post ALL GUESSES: May 11, 2012 - Friday, midnight Pacific Time

Please highlight or otherwise point out your bonus points attempts.

Guess correctly who submitted the topic... and a correct guess at who submitted the picture earns you additional points.
Guess correctly the secret "word or phrase" earns a chance at more points. Including the secret word or phrase within your blog content earns an additional point.

****************






WITHIN FRIENDSHIP'S FLAME

We gathered around the campfire
on that unforgettable summer's night,
sharing stories and singing songs
as the flames rose up so bright,
together sharing the glow
and friendship and song.

And as the flames rose up,
embers crackling in the night,
we listened to the words
and embraced the evening air,
as through the tortured darkness
of a somber and moonless sky,
love's once sweet song,
as the story told,
punctuated the silence
and peace of the night,
stories of broken dreams
and broken hearts
rising up from the flames
until rising from the ashes
broken hearts are mended
and dance through
the dark of night
and into the muted glow
of a suspended midnight moon
as we lost track of the time
within the stories' flow.

And at the hour of midnight
when all was very still,
as Marvin gave the sign
and Ruggi placed his hand
upon Irene's knee,
we followed their lead
and joined hands together
singing friendship's song
as the flames died down
and only ashes remained,
ashes to starlight glowing
and lighting up our hearts,
we found friendship and peace
around the campfire's flames
memories of that night remaining,
those moments between
the midnight hour
and the rising of the sun
as the moon painted the sky
suspended between
in those memories that linger
for just a little while
within friendship's flames
and those precious moments
before the rising of the sun.



(c) barbara kausteklis 5-10-12

Written for Blogophilia 11.5/"Ashes to Starlight."

http://www.myspace.com/blogophilia/blog/545683067

TOPIC SUBMITTED BY: Sallon

PICTURE SUBMITTED BY: Christopher



PHRASES: Hoops, Hoop Dreams, Brian's Song, Friday Night Lights, Blind Side, Radio, Rudy, The Longest Yard, The Doughnuts, The Simpson's Movie, Blood & Donuts, The Donut Movie, Iron Man 2, Lord of the Rings, The Great Race, Running as Fast as I Can, Icing on the Cake, Frosty the Snowman, The Circle Game, Just Guessing From L.A. . . . .

Excuse for ticket (as in parking ticket) -- "lost track of time . . . . "

Apologies to Ruggi and Irene -- included names only for the prompt -- names chosen at random.

****************
Thanks always for all visits and comments and for sharing another challenging Blogophilia week with me.

~barb~

AND LUNA FOUND ME (with photos)

AND LUNA FOUND ME
The moon slowly rose
over the mountains
to the east
crystal blue skies,
so very absent all week,
fading with the sunset,
bands of orange
and gold painted
across the horizon
and the western edge
of another day.

And the orange blossoms,
so fragrant and white,
having taken them for granted
until this day turned to night,
glowed in the darkness
as they captured my eye
each petal unfolding
bathed in fragrance
to delight.





And as I inhaled
the evening air
transfixed by the blossoms
and the sight I witnessed there,
the moon found my heart
rising higher and higher
as day became night
and Luna
found
me.

(c) barbara kausteklis 5-8-12

TICKLING OUR TOES (with photos)

TICKLING OUR TOES

I love that feeling
of soft grass on my feet;
I love how it feels
as it tickles my toes.
It simply makes me giggle
as my toes begin to wiggle,
feeling free as a bird
as a gentle breeze blows.

It’s such a beautiful day,
no time to feel blue;
spending a day
romping in the grass
has to be one of
my favorite things to do.
So cool and soothing
from the summer heat,
it’s a sweet sensation
that absolutely can’t be beat.

So let’s go dance in the rain
and let the wet grass
slip through our toes;
let’s dance among the raindrops
and beneath the arches
of magical rainbows.
Let’s dance with the wind
and leave all our stress behind
drifting off with the fragrance
of orange blossoms
floating upon the breeze.

Let’s dance once more
to the music of life
and the feeling of soft grass
as it tickles our toes.




(c) barbara kausteklis 5-6-12

Thanks, PALS, for sharing your wonderful
lines with me: Angel Love, Diane, Michelle K,
Scotorum, Flossie, and Me, Barbara K.

A Collab written for this week's CPC "Saturday Share."

http://www.friendburst.com/blog/88132/saturday-share-26/

Thanks always for your visits and comments.

~barb~

DANCING WITH THE SEASONS (with photos)

DANCING WITH THE SEASONS

Summer breathes a sigh,
shadows of late afternoon
giving way to Autumn,
leaves floating to the ground,
waltzing upon the breeze
as I marvel at their grace.
And as leaves of fall
have blanketed the ground,
crystalline snowflakes glisten
in a winter morning’s sun;
I join them in their dance
as they waltz into my heart.

And together we dance
to meet the dawn of spring,
winter melting away
as we greet this day
sheer unbridled joy,
a dance of new life
flowers blooming
and buds bursting
and birds singing
a brand new song.





(c) barbara kausteklis 5-2-12

Written for CPC "Wednesday Meet and Greet/
Dancing My Heart Away."

http://www.friendburst.com/blog/86752/dance-heart-away/

Thanks always for your visits and comments.


~barb~

MOTHER'S LILACS OF SPRING (with photos)

 
MOTHER'S LILACS OF SPRING

Mother loved the lilacs
that bloomed every year
the pride and joy of her garden --
I remember them so very well.
They filled up
the once-empty corner
of our big back yard
and our hearts,
and their sweet fragrance
always meant to her
(and to me)
that the deep snows
of winter had melted away,
that life was returning,
that indeed it was spring.



But nothing in life
ever remains the same;
and eventually we moved away
from the lilacs of spring.
And every year since
those sweet spring days,
I've looked for the lilacs,
so few to be found.
But today I went looking again
for the lilacs of my youth,
the fragrance I'd never forget
and the wonderfully subtle colors
that always meant it was spring.
And I found them
in a most unlikely spot
and inhaled those memories,
planting them in my garden
as I recall my mother
and her lilacs of spring.



(c) barbara kausteklis 5-3-12

Written for "Thematic Attic/Mother's Favorite Flower."

http://www.friendburst.com/blog/87894/thematic-attic-thursday-celebrating-mothers-favorite-flower/

Thanks always for all visits and comments.

~barb~