Life is amazing.  And then it’s awful.
And then it’s amazing again.
And in between the amazing and awful
It’s ordinary and mundane and routine.
Breathe in the amazing,
Hold on through the awful,
And relax and exhale during the ordinary.
That’s just living--
Heartbreaking, soul-healing,
Amazing, awful, ordinary life.
And it’s breath takingly beautiful.
 
  ---L.R.  Knost
 
 
Ah yes, Knost’s words resonate watching two young spikes in the farmer’s almost-Ireland-green field play tag in circles amongst the herd, then pursue Mr. Crow hop, hop, hopping just out of their reach seemingly to tease them before finally taking flight.  They buck and kick and twist in frustration or maybe their effort to fly as well?
 
And then:  news of yet another massacre of innocents-moms and dads, grandmothers, grandfathers, brothers, sisters and children in their place of worship-their refuge.  New Zealand’s darkest day.  Heartbreak for them, for us, for humanity.  But still, remember the morning prelude:  the brilliant pinks fading to blush and lavenders before the sun appeared warmly urging the lone magnolia bloom breaking through protective gray felted buds, and too, the trilliums’ scarlet red early shoots peeking from protected cover behind the rotted stump.
 
But chunky floors need sweeping, crumb-laden counters need wiping, and windows from the last storm’s gusts need washing before yet another steaming cup of tea and time to contemplate what’s next, all while remembering my day just last week this time with Grandson #2.  A sick day off from school because of his croupy seal cough, turned into some fort building time with Grandma down where his Mom’s and Uncle’s fort still stands under the roots of mammoth old fir trees.  How fortunate to live here on this mountain all of my life and now build a fort with my grandchild in this place with deep cushy moss, an abundance of sword fern and a menagerie of sticks perfect for roof building.
 
Yes, “heart-breaking, soul-healing,/amazing, awful, ordinary life/and it’s breath takingly beautiful.”
 
Lana Hechtman Ayers, local writer/author shared this quote from Anne Frank: “I can shake off everything as I write;  my sorrows disappear, my courage is reborn.”  Art Accelerated’s Writers’ Meet-Up, with Lana facilitating, meets Wednesday, April 3rd from 6-8PM in the Art Annex behind the Gallery.  You are most welcome to join writers in progress and “shake off everything” too!

by
Cindy Gardner

FOR MICHELLE, ON THE OCCASION OF HER EIGHTEENTH BIRTHDAY

Where is that little girl
who came to the Rockaway Library
so many years ago?
I've watched her grow and glow
as the young woman she's become.

Her enthusiastic smile
greets me no matter
where we meet --- Fred Meyer, Yo Time,
the Fairview Grange, the library.
There she was with her
"OH MY GOD! LINDA!"
And always, always, a big hug.
How can one not feel loved
with that smile, exclamation, and hug?

So, where did that little girl go?
She grew. Taller each time I saw her.
Hair longer, too. Her curiosity peaked
by the people, events, and the world
around her, posturing herself
to fit in, to be like everyone else.

But there's only one Michelle,
the little girl who came to the Rockaway Library
so long ago, the smiling, exclaiming, hugging young girl,
and now the young woman she's become
when we weren't looking!

I love you, Michelle. Be the best Michelle you can be.

Your forever friend,
Linda Werner