(Over)thoughts | A glimpse into the chaos.

Cuteness

Posted on July 24 2022 by J.W. Richmond

Nemo just discovered
my hair ties
and realized
how fun they are
to play with
swipe at
  bat around
and
knock
o
f
   f
   the counter
   o
   n
   t
   o
   the floor.

This morning
I woke up
to him realizing
the one in my hair
was fun
to play with too.

Cat.

I enjoy watching him
     discover new toys
games
and things to play with
like boxes
shoelaces
ping         pong balls
bed sheets
   and
Jeff.

I’d be ok
if he didn’t play with
the ties
that are already in my hair, though.

But then he nuzzles my hand
cuddles up against me
and falls asleep –
the hair tie already forgotten
by him and me
as his cuteness
takes over
once again.

Years later,
     our apricot tree
          is still doing its thing
                        allowing us
                   to connect with
                        neighbors
           front        and       back
left side
right side
d
o
w
n
the street
                            and all   a
                                             r
                                          o
                                       u
                                         n
                                             d
                                      the neighborhood.

As we share our fruit,
     we are getting
          to know people
                     throughout the community –
               especially in this year
                            of abundance.

We did not plan
     to overfeed
          all the ~~thieves~~
                    squirrels
               in the neighborhood,
            but they have fully
                    indulged anyway.

Even though the apricots
     are smaller this year
               than they sometimes are,
          we have been able to give
               so many away
   and we’re thankful
          for this tree we planted
               years ago
                    not realizing then
                        how much
                            it would produce,
                    allowing us
                        to share
                            its sweet fruit
                                    with others.

Unpolished

Posted on May 30 2022 by J.W. Richmond

Not everything
is created
to be shared.

Sometimes
my thoughts
ideas
words
are frag men ted
jag ged
j u B m L e D
and
n
o
n
s
e
n
s
i
c
a
l.

Sometimes
they are in process
unpolished
unfinished.

Sometimes
they aren’t worth
sharing
because of numerous
possible reasons.

And sometimes
they are just
for me.

Rhythmic

Posted on April 30 2022 by J.W. Richmond

The rhythmic patterns
rumble and s w oo s h
distinctly defined
precisely designed

Power and gentleness
flow and ebb
push and
pull
calming
the soul

All the mysteries
it holds
beneath the sheen
in the unexplored depths
where we’ve never been

How incredibly
small we are

How little we know
of what lies below

And how majestic
is the God
the imaginative potter
who created
the magnificent waters

Mess

Posted on March 27 2022 by J.W. Richmond

Should I keep doing this?

There is no
cohesive theme
for anyone else
to follow.
It’s not directed toward
a particular audience.
It’s a jumbled mess
of thoughts –
most of which
are probably unimportant.

But that has also been
kind of the point.

My head
is a mess.

So I’m training myself
to put some of the pieces
together
recognize patterns
figure out
some sort of
cohesion
sometimes
and finish
something
when nothing
seems ready
or good enough
because it never is.

It’s never quite perfect
and sometimes nowhere close.
But I’m trying to call some things
finished
anyway.

This space was designed
to push myself
to put endings on things –
writing
drawing
painting
photography –
even though
I’m still learning
all of it
and
even if
no one else
cares.

Maybe it’s
a silly medium
to work through
my natural tendency
to start
a lot of fun things
that I rarely finish,
but maybe
that’s reason enough
at least for now
whether anyone else
sees it
or not
and even if
it’s doomed
to irrelevance.

Hint

Posted on February 27 2022 by J.W. Richmond

Looking Backward

My mind hinted
at the thought
just out of view
taunting me
until it grew –
information
I forgot I knew.

Now it is near
or somewhere
between
becoming clear
for the future unseen.

The answer
is something
I learned
in a dream!

Outlines

Posted on January 30 2022 by J.W. Richmond

Blank Outline

I’m so bad
at outlining anything
ahead of time.

I get stuck
looking
staring
at that blank page
trying to figure out
how to predict the future
while knowing I can’t.

I anticipate
many different directions
a piece could go.

All I can do
is start
figure it out
during the process
learn the boundaries
and the main points
as they emerge.

I don’t generally draw
or paint
with outlines either
or attempt to
sketch in
where I’m headed.

When I try,
I feel constricted
frustrated.

It makes the whole experience
less fun
enjoyable
fulfilling
and I usually dislike
where it ends.

Not being able
to do things
in a predictable
prescribed pattern
the way others do
the way teachers
and bosses
wanted me to
always irritated them
but I’ve never been able
to work that way.

When a school assignment
required an outline,
I was forced
to throw something together
then change everything later
hoping the piece would be good enough
that the outline would no longer matter
or
I would work even harder
to write the entire piece
before the deadline
and create an outline afterward
from what I’d already written.

It’s not that
I don’t plan ahead at all.
I can –
to some extent –
and sometimes
I have a general direction
of where
I want to go.

But my skillset
has never included
predicting the future.

Snowy

Posted on December 28 2021 by J.W. Richmond

After a year
     of chaos
         craziness
         and disorder,
   it is a pleasant change
to

slow

down

and enjoy
a bit of calm.

Thank you, God,
for a snowy walk with you
for the beautiful view
time with family
water flowing in the river
and extra snow in the mountains
to help alleviate
our terrible drought.

You are good
and you give us such good things.

Thank you.

Spook-tacular

Posted on October 30 2021 by J.W. Richmond

Eddie

People everywhere
are dressed up –
          as a robot
                 princess
                 skeleton
dancer
                 bee
                 bat
coach
                 astronaut
                 turtle
Fred Flintstone
                    and more –
          at the office
   school
   grocery store
            while playing sports
strolling through the parking lot
or just taking a walk down the street.

And Halloween isn’t even
until tomorrow!

It’s a bit of relief
in the midst of
a very stressful time –
an excuse
to relax
take a break
from the everyday
and smile
at the silly
fun costumes
decorations
lingo
and spook-tacular wackiness
of Halloween.

Drought

Posted on September 26 2021 by J.W. Richmond

The sky is up there
somewhere,
I think,
but the smoke
is in the way
and we can’t see it.

This is just a typical summer now,
apparently.

I keep praying
for God
to bring rain
to the land
that so desperately needs it
to the areas
that actually need it –
a calm
steady
life-giving rain –
without any more lightning fires
mudslides
or flooding.

God, we desperately need you
to intervene
to do what only you can do
to provide life
to our planet
without calamity.

You can.
You have before.

But will you?

How long, O Lord,
will you leave us
in this severe drought?

Please bring rain
and heal your land
your forests
your crops
your livestock
your dry riverbeds
your almost-empty lakes
your earth.