a pansy rainbow
radiating happiness
on a summer day
Poetry
Black-necked stilts parade tanka: LAPC & BOTW
black-necked stilts parade
on pink legs, slender yet strong,
in search of magic
hidden beneath the marshlands
in iridescent ripples
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge (LAPC) – Delicate
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Hope may be… : LAPC & WPWC
Hope may be bright spots in the darkness
Or at the end of a twisted and turning path
Hope may be something we wish and pray for
Continue readingSeeing the softness of nature: LAPC & WPWC
Seeing the softness of nature
Walking behind a wall of water of a woodland waterfall
Regarding a heron ruminating over rippling reflections
Spotting the strength of steel softened by a spring snow
Continue readingPainted Hills trail Rispetto poem: JMW
A rough Painted Hills trail meanders ahead
Curving towards colorful hills of mystery
Cutting through foliage, shriveled and dead
Through an ancient landscape filled with history
Covered with ash spewed by Cascade volcanoes
Compacted, sculpted into hillside rainbows
Layered with varied stripes of red, green, and gold
Reminders of climates, hot, humid, and cold
Jo’s Monday Walk (JMW)
In the moments before dawn poem: WWP & WIL
In the moments before dawn,
Light from a single star
Awakens the spirit
Hidden within
Slumbering winter trees
Sounds of wild creatures: LAPC
Sounds of wild creatures, the large and the small,
Pulling our attention, leaving us enthralled
Small Black-throated Sparrows pause and perch high
Singing unforgettable melodies to deep azure skies
Large Wild Turkeys graze and promenade
Chortling calls rise, then fall in cascades
Beneath the Clouds in B & W: LAPC & WS
Paddling beneath the clouds
Floating lacelike
Over lakes of lifegiving water
Puffs of pale exhalations
Follow meandering rivers
Cat seeking comfort poem: Haiku Challenge
cat seeking comfort
tolerant dog shares her bed
warmth on a fall day
Moments of Magic in Oregon: LAPC, WWP
Remembering moments of magic in Oregon
Rambling past remnants of history with curious children in tow
Watching bird broods on windswept islands stretch their wings to flutter and fly
Continue readingNorthern winds haiku: WHPPC
northern winds swirl, sting
snowflakes dance, drift, and alight
kisses of winter
Time accelerates haiku: SS, HPC, FOL, NPC
time accelerates
color flies through restless leaves
the end of autumn

Sunday Stills (SS) – Leaves, Autumn or Spring; Monthly Color Challenge – Brown
Treasures of the Old West: LAPC & MM
Here are some treasures of the Old West at the Museum of the American West, in Lander, Wyoming, shown in both color and black and white. Click on the arrows to see monochrome versions highlighting their symmetry.
Wheels may carry you forward, towards new horizons
Or back, to a final resting place
You may choose to wander in another’s shoes
Continue readingWhispers of autumn poem: WWP
Whispers of autumn
Blown in on
Northern winds
Cool and crisp
Leaves turn
From verdant to
Golden, orange,
Crimson
Rustles
Drifting gently
To Earth
Ripples of summer haiku: WHC, SS, CWWC
lamplit paths tremble
a bridge arises from green
ripples of summer
Weekly Haiku Challenge (WHC) – Lamp & path
Beneath a cloudy Wyoming sky Nonet poem: WS
Beneath a cloudy Wyoming sky
Bunchgrass buffeted by the wind
Wave a welcome to pronghorn
Sage embraces the herd
Distant thunder booms
A doe trembles
Giving birth
Beloved
Fawn
Weekend Sky (WS)
Fluttering into a wild iris meadow: WWP
Fluttering into a wild iris meadow
White-faced Ibis alight
Curved bills preen and probe
Iridescent feathers catch fading light
Casting rainbows over dusty hills
Awakening dormant wildflowers
Yearning for an opportunity
To shine
Spring’s gentle beauty haiku: HPC
on arduous treks
take time to pause and notice
spring’s gentle beauty
When misty fog surrounds haiku: HPC
seek a firm anchor
when misty fog surrounds you
dawn will show the way
The power of red blossoms: SS & Sijo poem
The power of red blossoms radiating in the garden.
Crimson petals briefly unfold, reaching towards a cloudless sky
And the memory of their fire burns deep within your soul.





Through my pocket lens: LAPC & WPWC
Peering through my pocket lens
Vivid reflections shine
where the river bends
The colors soar high into the blue
pausing in rainclouds
falling as dew
Droplets of pigment splatter parched plants
cling to pale petals
interweave and dance
Fable of the fox haiku: Haiku Prompt Challenge
fable of the fox
who crept too close to a fire
enlightened and singed
Morning on a fall day cinquain poem: SoCS
Morning
On a fall day
Brilliant colors appear
Merging into luminous wings
Soaring
The blur of autumn: Weekly Haiku & Sunday Stills
the blur of autumn
catcher of fading colors
thoughts of winter’s chill
Geese flying high quinzaine poem: OWS & SM
Geese flying high over Bend
Searching for good brews?
Soaring songs?
Avian sentry poem: WWP
Avian sentry alert at daybreak
Perched on cattails near High Desert lake
Dangerous clouds move in
Surrounding him
Lightning flashes
Thunder crashes
Blackbird sounds alarm
Protecting marshes from harm
Wind-sculpted poem: Haiku & MM
wind-sculpted mountains
emerge from sandy shorelines
embrace life, vanish
Note: These sand “mountains” near Waldport, Oregon are about 1/2 inch tall.
Primrose painting, photo, & Poem: First Friday Art
Today I’m sharing a primrose painting, photo, and poem I created. When I was on a field trip in early June, we saw a “field” of this plant in bloom near Crack in the Ground. Tufted evening-primrose, Oenothera caespitosa, usually only bloom at night but on that day, dark clouds filled the skies.
Here’s a watercolor I painted of the flowers.
And here’s the work in progress in my little studio space.
This is the close up photograph I took of these beautiful flowers near Crack in Ground. I’m growing evening-primrose in my landscaping and, so far, the always hungry resident mule deer have not discovered them. 🤞
Here is a Sijo poem about these remarkable flowers.
Awakened when the moon rises over the silent desert
Flowers in sandy soil open, shining like pale lanterns
Enchanting the world with intoxicating scent, until dawn breaks
Do you have artwork you would like to share? Be sure to include the First Friday Art tag.
Guided by shadows haiku: FFC & WHPPC
guided by shadows
emerald meadows slumber
slip into summer
High Desert voices of the many and the few: LAPC
High Desert voices can be heard throughout Central Oregon if you just pause and listen.
Bold shouts of the many
Quiet whispers of the few
Raucous calls of the many
Continue readingThe path meanders haiku: Haiku poetry challenge
the path meanders
up a rocky desert butte
embraced by spring clouds
Thermophile color – Nonet poem: LAPC
Thermophile color blooms near Earth’s core
In bouquets of startling brilliance
Fertilized by extreme heat
In caldera water
Where few dare to tread
The Archaea
Find a home,
Warm and
Safe
Driving around the bend-Sijo poem: LAPC, TTC, SWPC
Driving around the bend, visions of new worlds come into view.
Splashes of warm color, framed in cool blue, catch our attention.
Images pass by fast and vanish, remembered as a dream.
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge (LAPC) #191- Curves
Delicate feather haiku: Weekly Haiku Challenge
delicate feather
propelled by whispers of wind
settles on snow drifts
Dragons breathing fire – haiku: Haiku Challenge & MWM
dragons breathing fire
over magical snowscapes
on the edge of spring
A rainbow moonscape haiku: WS
Diaphanous strands haiku: OLWG, LAPC, WS
diaphanous strands
a colorful serape
muffles winter’s chill
Online Writers Guild (OLWG) – #242 – A colorful serape
Blue worlds Haiku poem: Haiku Prompt Challenge
blue worlds drift away
scattered by the winds of change
winter’s eve draws near
Dusk and dawn desert sky – Essence poem: WS & SM
Dusk and dawn desert sky,
Clouds move on, catch my eye
The wisest ones wait – 2 haiku: SS & Haiku Challenge
the wisest ones wait
impatient trembles of green
longing for fall’s kiss
scarlet embraces
gold whispers, orange laughter
autumn’s fleeting love
Sunday Stills (SS) – Leaves and Trees
Ronovan Writes Weekly Haiku Poetry Prompt Challenge – Wait and Wise




































































