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One Deep Breath - Giving

no jewel compares
to a frog or river rock
given with love

for more haiku on Giving please visit One Deep Breath

One Deep Breath - Adventure

unplanned adventure
on a rocky road to Prescott
--Mike's Art Gallery

Art Gallery, Congress AZ

We returned last evening from a week of Adventures in Arizona. I love unplanned stops along the road that often turn out to be the more memorable than the planned destinations. On Thanksgiving Day, we headed north of Phoenix to Prescott AZ where Tom's grandmother had lived. I suggested that we stop to get a photo of the carved bear as we passed through Congress AZ, as the town seemed to consist of the bear, the gallery, and a shop across the street. (I want to add the photo to Google Earth but so far have not figured out how to do that.)

As I was taking the photo, Mike, the shop's owner came out and invited us into his gallery. I was too awed by his carvings inside the gallery to think to photograph them. He uses huge fallen tree trunks to carve fireplace mantels and other sculptures. I did take one photo of the detail of a piece that he is working on:

Mike then showed us a small model house that he had built to showcase the cabinetry, door carvings, and other various decorative pieces. I was particularly impressed by the cactus spine cabinets.

 

I'm not usually a fan of snakes, especially when hiking; however, this coiled snake sink didn't caused me to recoil (not that I'd necessarily want one):

green house
from Earth's dry brown
old is new

Mike doesn't have a website or I would post it but if you're ever in (or near) Congress, Arizona, I'm sure he'd be delighted to give you a tour. Just tell him the blond in the red cowgirl boots sent you.

One Deep Breath - Belong

friend, be long
at this table
we feast

This haiku was written for my few close friends...you know, the kind that you keep for life....the kind that belong to you. (They know who they are :-)

One Deep Breath - Change

some change
just doesn't tally
--Johnny died

Johnny was my husband's cousin. Today is his funeral. He died on Monday of a lung disease whose name I don't even know...all I know is that it took both John on Monday and his mother, Aunt Betty, several years ago. I know in a lot a families that cousins are relatives that you saw occasionally when you were a child, but in this extended family, we see our cousins, aunts, uncles, and offspring of all frequently. Most often we all get together each Sunday in summers at a family pool.

My "in-lawed" aunts, uncles and cousins are not just my adopted family but my friends and the stories of their pasts have been recounted so many times that it's almost hard to believe that I wasn't actually there for the events. I know that I have been extremely fortunate to have both  a close-knit birth family and having married into one as well. But of course with great fortune, sometimes comes great loss. St. Paul wrote about the Body of Christ and how each member is an integral part of that Body. The same can be said of families. When one member rejoices, all rejoice; when one suffers, all suffer. At the same time, families serve to heal one another at times of loss.

When I selected the prompt of Change for  this week's One Deep Breath post, this was not the sort of change that I had in mind. However, the death of a loved one is perhaps the most difficult type of change that people face. For those of you that have recently lost a family member or friend, my prayers extend for your comfort and the consolation of knowing that through our writings each week we often touch one another's lives. To all my friends (both "long-term" and at ODB) thank you again for the joy and sense of amity that you bring to me.

One Deep Breath - Simplicity

same park bench
unwavering refuge for
all seasons

for One Deep Breath

the train is pulling out of the station!

  a blossom in dew
succumbs to the hovering bee
--intoxication

Join our haiku train at One Deep Breath....just ONE MORE DAY to hop the train! Join us :-)

One Deep Breath - Evening

at
dusk
the sun
steals the earth's
dimension and flings
it upward to feathered pink clouds

****
summer sun
crisp as fried chicken
darts off to bed

for One Deep Breath

One Deep Breath - Comfort

the life of one rose
in a garden of many
is forever fragrant

the Gardener
cultivates gladness from grief
comfort from sorrow

a rose in its prime
gathers strength from the same vine
as the falling rose

For those of us who love words, they sometimes seem to be inadequate when we need them most--particularly when wanting to offer them as comfort. However, the poets of One Deep Breath have again demonstrated not only their talent, but their compassion and kindness through their expressions of comfort to Jennifer and her family on the loss of her father. Sincere thanks to all.

One Deep Breath - Bodies of Water

toes submerge in sand
ankle deep in gulf surf
--Dauphin Island

While in the Mobile AL area on Monday, Maria and I took a spontaneous side-trip to Dauphin Island. In this quiet small beach town we spent a little time strolling along the beach and stopping to watch a hermit crab.

mischievous waves
fling a hermit
onto his back

golden treasures
from Gulf waters enjoyed most
when battered and fried

(Don't Maria's nails look great?! She did them herself.)

And who snagged that last bite of key lime pie? I'll never tell :-)

(for Maria)

gather memories
like seashells

display them in a jar
and on dry-dock days
take one out
and hold it tight to your ear

listen carefully
and recall the peaceful sound
of the waves
and the laugh of a beloved friend

One Deep Breath - Light & Shadow

through diaphanous wings
a midday sun paints a rusty shadow
on rough white rock

for more haiku, take  One Deep Breath