Hello and welcome to Poetry Friday. Molly Hogan has the roundup here if you’d like some inspiration from her recent work and participation in a workshop. Thanks for hosting, Molly!
Summer has gone fast. Our hillside project going to the dock is nearing completion. My husband has worked hard at engineering this space and, as usual, has done a fabulous job.
We attended our first local concert in the nearest town, about five miles away. It was fun and great to see both young and old enjoying music from a young (22 yo) up-and-coming country artist and her band. The best part for me was to see all the young kids playing with each other, dancing, hitting baseballs and volleyballs, and visiting. No one, young or old, was on their devices. I’d say more than half of the town of 900 was there. Out of our attendance came an introduction to the organizer, whom we later had coffee with this week. The Friends group is trying to revitalize the town, and we were so happy to hear that; we wanted to meet her to see how we could help.
It turns out her husband is also the local school system’s Superintendent (I think 3 for the last three years; he’s had the position). So we talked about that as well, and it might be a contact that will allow me to start volunteering again for a local school district. I do miss contact with students, as I remind some of you who still work with them when I read your pieces (Jone, Margaret, Linda M., Heidi, and others, I’m sure). It made me really think about what I’d do with the opportunity should I have it. I’ll write more on that in a future post.
Poetry has been on my mind. I have three in-progress poems that I want to work more on. The importance of editing has imprinted itself upon my writing routines, so there’ll be no sharing of those today. They are all nature-based poems. I’m wondering more and more if poetry is really for me. We’ll see, as they say; time will tell.
Medium has been going well, but my articles reflect that I’ve been a little blah. I will post links to them at the end.
Last week, a person we know had a baby who had to spend time in the NICU after birth – despite being full-term. It took me back to my NICU days as a nurse and also having to come home without my second son after having him due to a brief stint in the NICU.
And I’ve been watching the drought in Europe with interest. We are scheduled to go on our second River Cruise in the Netherlands in late September – early October. It seems everything, everywhere is dry – if anyone needs proof of climate change, this summer has provided a lot of examples. So, I’m starting to work on an article about drought, as well.
As the title indicates, this is a mishmash post. For those of you who stopped by my Etsy shop to buy things as I am in the process of shutting that down, I thank you! Your generosity and kindness mean a lot. This is the last day of the sale.
Were I a Bird by Edward Smythe Jones |
| Were I a bird free born to fly Aloof on two wee, downy wings, My canopy would be the sky When rosy morn its dawning springs. Were I a bird I’d sweetly sing Earth’s vesper song in tree-tops high, And chant the carol of the Spring To every weary passerby. Were I a bird, the sweetest voice That human ear has ever heard, The mocking-bird would be my choice, For he’s the sweetest singing bird! Were I a bird my life would be In keeping with the Will divine. I’d sing His carols full and free In spreading oak and cony pine! Were I a bird through air I’d roam, Just flitting on the morning breeze, In search of summer’s sunny dome, To live contentedly at ease. Read more here. This poem is in the public domain. |
Lately, I’ve been enamored and fascinated by birds. This is why I picked this poem to share.
Below are some Medium article links. For those interested, I earn about $20.00/month on the platform. Sometimes, I’ve earned much more, but lately, it’s been the average of $20.00. I take it as some validation for my writing. If you decide to sign up under one of my articles, we both benefit. $5.00 per month will allow you to read all the articles you want from anyone! Thanks!
© Carol Labuzzetta, 2026
Sunset on the lake is always beautiful.
Lastly, I see that some of you have wonderful new websites. Have you done them yourselves? I just cannot seem to get around to organizing mine, so I am considering having someone do it. I’d love to hear from you if you recently redid your blog/website. I have to stick with WordPress but want to make my site easy to navigate, and right now it is not. Thanks.
I think the website work would be a great investment of my time right now. So any information, including cost, would be helpful. If you choose not to publicly comment, email me at labcar81@gmail.com. Thanks for the consideration.
If you go to the Medium articles, click on one, and it should take you to the beginning, where you’ll see the words Friend Link under the first paragraph. If you click on that, you should be able to read the whole thing. Thanks.
Thanks for sharing the bird poem. I thought I detected a Scottish or Irish accent in the verse and was surprised to see that the author was a black son of slaves from Mississippi. The mockingbird should’ve given me a clue. Your walkway project looks like a long process but exciting to see.
Thanks for the birdy poem. It doesn’t sound as vintage as it is, to me. What interesting language. Those mockingbirds! They are everywhere. I love a good mishmash! Your stairs to the dock look like a challenging but satisfying property upgrade. Hooray! I love that red sun in your photos supervising all the work…not even wearing a hard hat. ha!
The poem you shared highlights the never-ending generosity of birds. I think of this often. Thanks for sharing your mishmash today. The property project looks impressive and it was interesting to read about your experiences with Medium. It was also fun to follow along with your recent thoughts and experiences, and it sounds like you’ve been quite busy!
Your new walkway looks great! Yay for birdy friends and birdy poems. Thank you!