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| My daughter Mary who is now fifty years old. |
April is . . .
April
is ephemeral spring beauties peeking
through
worn out leaves.
It’s
backyard birds competing
in
a choral contest
And
rain and squishy mud underfoot
April
is daffodils and narcissus competing
to
produce the first bloom.
It’s
red-winged blackbirds swaying
on
cattails by the pond
And
proliferating potholes.
April
is a school playground of discarded jackets
like
a disordered rummage sale.
It’s
running sap, running ponies,
running
noses
And
the return of phoebes and spring peepers.
April
is bright crocuses dancing
through
the gardens.
It’s
that late order for seeds sent
to
Pinetree Gardens
And
rubber boots as a fashion statement.
April
is Canada geese abandoning V formations
to
fly in couples.
It’s
multiple motorcycles roaring down the
road
And
digging out rakes, pruners, and garden gloves.
April
is raccoons, possums, and skunks
littering
the highways.
It’s
new green and the yellow of forsythia
April
is warm air, new hope, cheerful smiles
And
snow covering daffodils.
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| A pussy willow tree by my barn. |
April is all of
those things in my poem and Easter, too, as well as April Fools’ Day something
kids love and third grade teachers. After the crazy March we had around here, I
only hope there are very few April showers. We had enough of those in March to
keep the ground saturated for months. So I’m looking for a sunnier and warmer
April than we had in March although there were strange days in March that even
got up to seventy degrees and a few days later went down to below twenty
degrees.
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| I was told it will be a collection piece. |
In March four
people I knew died, and I went to three funerals in three weeks, two in one
week.
In March I
finally got a cover for my 8th book after waiting over a month for
it. Unfortunately, my step-granddaughter misspelled the name Phyllis on the cover, and I didn’t notice it until I ordered 25 copies of the book. I’m hoping
she’ll soon correct that so I can change it.
In April I hope
to finish book nine that I started while waiting for the cover of book eight.
In April I’m
looking forward to Easter at my sister’s house where my only contribution will
be pickles and olives. Elaine loves to
cook and is very good at it. I only cook when absolutely necessary anymore, and
that’s usually something I can eat for three or four days. I figure after all
the years of cooking for others it’s okay to cut back on that. I will be taking
potted flowers for everyone.
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| This is just a very small amount of my branches. |
In April I will
be busy cleaning up the huge amount of branches small, big and huge from the
area all around my house. They came down from the very strong winds that hit
our area numerous times in March. I also need to start cleaning up my many
gardens around the house.
In April I’ll be
going one Sunday to St. William’s card party. There will be enough prizes for
everyone attending and lots of good food to eat. I’ll be having fun playing
cards with a friend, cousin, and sister-in-law. I miss playing cards since half
of the friends I played cards with have died.
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| The Happy Days Lodge was built years ago. |
In April I’ll be
going to a folk concert at Happy Days Lodge in Cuyahoga Valley National Park
with my good friend and fellow folk music lover, Dianne.
In April I have
at least one birthday party I’ll be attending. It’s for my one year old
great-grandson Santino. I may hear of more, but that’s all for now.
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| My pony Pufffy grazing by my blueberry bushes in bloom. |
In April some of
the flowering trees and bushes will start blooming.
In April I’m
hoping I can get many more walks in my woods than I was able to get for the
past few months because of the weather.
But what I’m
looking forward to most is the end of April when I’ll be attending my tenth Malice
Domestic Conference for the tenth year. I’ll again be a moderator for Murder Small
Town, and I’m already reading the books of my panelists and enjoying them.
What do you like
about April?
