Bella World

all she has to do is look pretty, cock her ears a bit

and little girls will come, even tall blonde women, 

they know that Bella loves them.

In living rooms, on the street, she walks boldly towards

them, tail high and wagging, eager and they stop,

smile, and ask

"Can I pet her?"

This is Bella World, where oxytocin flows in dog

and human alike, where homework is put aside,

dishes are left undone and dog hair abides 

on kitchen floors and couches, alike.  

When will Bella be invited again to your house?

 

Cutest mailbox ever

I'd call it the pneumonia mailbox, in honor of feeling sluggish, yet still alive,

enough to be bored, to cast about for something to do, that is not

too demanding.

The mailbox.

Five years ago, leaning dangerously off a shattered pole

(ah the destructiveness of youth), then righted, but

unhappy.

Ugly, every day.

And me, unable to muster the discipline of taping lines,

complex, fussy designs, inspired by sunflowers 

I painted her yellow, then considered the beauty of nature

where there are no straight lines and all are welcome (!)

The colors of our house.

I coughed and sputtered, and painted a beautiful mailbox.

Memories of pneumonia.