INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
Laszlo Slomovits
Alan Britt
Tolu Ogunlesi
Paul B. Roth
Gerald Clark
Dike Okoro
Jerry Blanton
Felino Soriano
Joanie Freeman
Steve Barfield
Shuta Crum
Running Cub
Odimegwn Onwumere
Duane Locke
Chris Lord
Fred Wolven
Nona Giorgadze
Bobby Steve Baker
Brandon S. Ray
satnrose
Serena Trome
Paul Handley
Kanev Peycho
George Moore
R. Jay Slais
Carol Smallwood
for Anna Grace
Just outside the window a light drizzle falls
gently on the spring-green grass and asphalt drive.
Over under a flowering shrub a small red-winged blackbird,
while finding cover from the cooling rain,
picks at a berry from another nearby bush.
In the distant horizon the sun seeks space,
as it reaches higher skyward, between gray clouds
widening with the growing morning's light.
A variety of small palm tree leaves move slowly
back and forth in an irregular pattern.
A few miles north in the county my youngest granddaughter
stands, walks a few steps, slips and falls, picks herself up
and walks some more enjoying her newfound mobility.
It's the beginning of another warm day in South Florida.
FROM CITY ROAD TO LAKESHORE
Earlier today I watched a peacock scurry across the road,
something I haven't witnessed up close in twenty plus years.
It must be a young one as its colors aren't yet very bright.
Sometimes it just seems either unusual or more fascinating
than other days, more interesting to take in these occasional
glimpses of nature's wonders either in the nearby woodlot
or driving along city streets or out on country roads, or even
when walking around the lake in our neighborhood.
Yes, when this afternoon I notice a young family of anhinga
swimming along, just out from the shoreline, diving in search
of their fish meals, I can't help but be drawn to their ability to
remain underwater for great distances and then resurface just as
surely acting as if it is second nature. And I know it is, it really is.
If only we would leave nature alone, not intentionally cutting
into its core--displacing the natural habitat for fowl, for wild
animals, for even the smallest creatures--slugs, for instance,
we might realize that we could live in harmony with God's
beasts, serpents, fish, and fowl. Ah, what a life that could be.
Fred Wolven, South Florida