Category Archives: free verse

word dump with glimmers

I am catching my breath a bit. The last month or so has been a bit of a whirlwind…my wife had a health crisis, (she’s on the mend…slowly), we celebrated great granddaughter #2 on her first birthday…then my oldest daughter’s 50th…in the middle of all that we rescued a special pup…Traci’s dream dog…I couldn’t say no…(who we discovered has some medical issues – our vet said “you all know how to pick em…” though I think it is the universe that does the picking) and of course the world is going crazy as usual…so much noise!

But I have been writing…and there have been some lovely glimmers…and I caught my breath long enough to post them…

Much love, peace, and glimmers to you.

~kat 🌿✨💚✨🌿

Let’s start with a few glimmers….


And some words that spilled out and made it to my notebook. Random…a bit chaotic…like life right about now. I always angst about posting…should I…shouldn’t I…


proof of life

a spark, a glimmer,
electrical blips
on an ultrasound screen
proof enough
that a human exists
but not belonging…
no…belonging requires
puritanical Arian roots
fundamentally defined
by powerful men
who only see in white
too ignorant to realize
that white only exists
because of a rainbow
of diverse, diffused color…
a rainbow
light dancing on a spectrum.
it’s called diversity
they call it DEI, an acronym
destined for the dustbin
of history as only they
remember it

~k

weekends at Mitch’s

somewhere in the dark in between
a simple mind, long faded to black
withers, gray matter pumped with air
while cowards conjure
20 minute conversations,
to keep his seat on ice…
pressed for proof his minions
craft lame, artificially
intelligent snapshots
of a life perpetually extended,
a stiff fabricated smile, blurred hands,
a spark, a glimmer, electrical blips
but nobody’s home
proof of life obscured
to satisfy hate’s architect
his mortgaged soul left to roam
the corridors of hell
if there is such a place
to taste the bitter poison
he scattered on the vulnerable
when winning and cruelty made
his black heart skip a beat

~k

true story…a haiku

it is a good day
when I don’t confuse toothpaste
with hemorrhoid cream

~k

a wish à la limerick

I hope this day is a good one for you.
Filled with delights, and fun things to do.
With time for a breath
Put your feet up and rest
Have dessert if you like before dinner…have two

~k

writer’s block

I have not been blocked
but I have been haunted
by words offering no buffer,
no consolation from the noise
to write or not to write…
what a silly question!

~k

tempest do tell

out of nowhere fierce winds
sweep through the hills
upturning leaves
exposing tree bones
and sinew bending, bending,
baring their souls as their roots
cling to damp, fragile earth
the air puffing and huffing
as if to say, “i can take you out
anytime i want, snap your limbs,
tossing them to the ground…”
everyday the air reminds us
it is just one easternly swell
from tempest…everyday the trees
reach toward the light, soak up
the dew at dawn, shelter tender
fledglings pre-flight, and dance…
oh, how they dance on the breeze
they know the wind better
than it knows itself, its predictable
unpredictability, and that its
fierceness is just hot air

~k

🌿✨💚✨🌿


pin drop

I keep jars full of wishes and Mr grumpy rock on my window sill over my kitchen sink…to keep me grounded.
a bit of a much needed rant…

pin drop

confessions
(declarations)
of a bleeding heart,
(of a compassionate)
lib-tard,
(open-minded)
progressive,
(hopeful)
socialistic,
(inclusive)
antifa commie,
(revolutionary)
snowflake,
(caring)
terrorist,
(patriot)
lesbian,
(living my truth)
trans-loving
(celebrating diversity)
piggy…
(eye roll…sticks and stones…you know the bit)

sorry…

not
sorry

that is all

that
is
all

~kat

I’m so over it…all of it. The lies, the hate, the destruction, the cruelty. I wrote this poem days ago. I suppose I needed to get it out of my head so I can focus on what matters. I’m still figuring out what that is. But at least for now I have glimmers to distract me from the chaos and the utter hopelessness I feel at needing to stop this insanity from destroying us all…and not knowing how to do that. I do hope you are safe and healthy, surrounded by the love of family and friends, and if that is the most I can hope for, then for now it is enough. It has to be enough to hold on to hope.

Much love, peace, and glimmers to you.

~kat

This is a downy thornapple. Fruit of the moon plant in my garden. It is full of seeds, so I read. Weeks ago this moon plant almost looked like it was not going to make it, leaves drooping, scorched by the hot sun, we kept it watered and hoped this little plant and its sister would survive…
They have both gained a foot in every direction…even in this heat. If that is not hope, I don’t know what hope is. And partly as well because we tended to them…there is certainly a lesson there. To tend to what is struggling to help it reach its full potential. I’m going to chew on that for a while. What good things need tending…? It’s a start.

boundless

Write your guide to setting healthy boundaries in relationships.

boundless

before you even ask
I will offer myself
in service to you…
prompted,
i have no choice
but to tell you, I’m here
if you need me, or
even if you don’t, though
secretly I hope you do
because
I need to be needed
which is why
boundaries to me are like
chalk lines on pavement
on rainy day or
ice cubes in warm water
I am severely distracted
by need…
advice you ask? Well,
I’m no expert but
I have heard it’s a simple
two letter word
no…
unfortunately
I can’t bear the thought
of uttering it, but
if you give it a go
please let me know
how it went

~kat

I have a few little glimmers for you…the first is one of my squirrel friends noshing on nuts, perfectly framed by a pair of moon flowers plants. Forgive the graininess of the photo. I was across the yard when I spotted him. Of course I had to take a photo!

And the second glimmer…the first cuttings from my little raised herb garden. There is a certain satisfaction that comes from growing something green!

Much love, peace, and glimmers to you!

~kat 🌿✨✨✨💚💚💚✨✨✨🌿


my religion (daily prompt)

Do you practice religion?

A religion is a structured system of beliefs, values, and practices concerning humanity's relationship to the spiritual, the supernatural, or a higher power. It typically provides a moral framework for living and answers questions about the purpose of life. ~AI

my religion

oh, to become one
with every subtle breeze
to gracefully sway
in step with bending trees
a cerulean
flickering canopy
shimmering, sun-kissed,
as an earthy sweetness
wafts from dewy peat

while some may believe
that faith is best practiced
behind rigid walls,
light filtered through stained glass
I beg to differ
for the north wind whispers
truth straight to my heart
and the warm, trembling loam
calls my wandering soul home

~kat

I have been on vacation, which means working morning to night doing some much needed late spring cleaning! Inside…outside…in between…everything is spiffy clean! 😅

I have been writing bits and pieces…and perhaps I shall finish a few of those un-uttered thoughts. But for now this question grabbed my attention yesterday and kept gnawing at me to finish it. So I paused my latest (and I admit, least favorite) task, folding laundry, to pour this piece out of my head and satisfy the muse for now.

Of course there have been glimmers this week…here are a few (a glimmer dump! 😊)

Much love, peace, and glimmers to you!

~kat



Na|GloPoWriMo 2026 Day 30

muse

Annoying! You know I’m busy…now is not the time! The presentation, that we just found out about THIS MORNING, is due by COB today…TODAY! And there are eight people in five different time zones that need to get their slides to me to complete the task, make it look presentable for tomorrow’s 9 am ET meeting…by COB!!! And I’m already SOL…COB came and went…it’s tomorrow already in Shanghai! But it’ll be okay…that guy never sleeps…I need coffee!

You need jasmine tea my dear…a twist 
of lemon or a dash of clover honey, or both…
or your favorite, Sir Earl with a dollop of sweet cream…

What I NEED is for YOU to be quiet!!! Go find yourself a dark corner and brood. Do that tortured thing you do…disappear and torment me when I need you! Where was I? Coffee…send the template to the team, remind them that I need their slide BEFORE COB…so in other words NOW…sorry Barcelona…

You’re missing it…

WHAT? WHAT NOW!?!!!

the dawn…golden streams
of light, dew-kissed leaves
fluttering, a soft breeze transforming 
them into amber and emeralds,
the trill of robins fading as wrens,
thrushes, and sparrows pick up
the chorus, the jays and crows
bellowing, doves cooing…
you’re missing it…

WHAT I’M MISSING IS MY DEADLINE IF I DON’T GET ON WITH IT!!! I’ve seen decades of dawns…three slides done, five to go, the usual dawdlers…it’s going to be a long night…

_

two more loaded, edited for typos, formats polished, table of contents and the appendix updated…

–

and another slide…go team! we might just make that deadline!…wait…what? cancelled?! It’s 4 pm! “Someone” decided the ask was unreasonable given the complexity of the project…the meeting is moving to next week?!!! I need a break!!! I’m going to call it a day…a wasted day at that…uh hello? It’s almost sunset…

hellooooo? 

okay…I get it…I’m sorry…

…really sorry… exhausted…

I

need

sleep

–

–

–

What? …Who? …Oh, it’s you…ARE YOU SERIOUS!!! It’s 3 am!

I love the quiet at night, don’t you?
I forgive you my darling.
Now, about that sunset I missed…
tell me about it, won’t you?
I want to know every magnificent detail…

~kat


And that’s a wrap…30 poems in 30 days. Today’s final Na|GloPoWriMo 2026 Day 30 Prompt: try writing your own poem that discusses a real or mythical being or profession (demons, firefighters, demonic firefighters) with the same sort of musing yet dispassionate tone.


And today’s glimmer is my loyal shadow Gabby…always over my shoulder, next to me, or underfoot. I cherish every day the fates allow me to have her company.

Much love, peace, and glimmers to you!

~kat

✨✨✨💚💚💚✨✨✨