she stepped quietly from the ancient taxi cab, and faced the door without a handle–pushing in softly; the smell of vanilla floated between the swells of wildflowers in cracked jugs and the soft mewing of a tiny black kitten on a crushed velvet pillow welcomed her home
And the woman may be awestruck
And the woman may truly care
But the woman is so tired
So the woman disappears
Come in out of the darkness
Bella Donna my soul
Don’t change, baby please don’t change
from the album, Bella Donna by Stevie Nicks, 1980
a dream:
she cradled the peonies in her arms tenderly before waving and turning away—and it was the sweet peony smell that lingered, upon awakening, in the morning breeze
Lesson IX–Conserving Wild Dragons
It is vital that the student realize that dragons are wild creatures and, as such, will resist taming.
from the book The Dragonology Handbook — A Practical Course in Dragons by Ernest Drake, 2005
red books hiding in a hand painted pot
old lanterns resting in a crumbling bird bath
pink columbine shaking in a summer storm
ferns quietly unfurling,
fallen petals and tiny sleeping fawns,
shadows on rocks and on thoughts
one person’s weeds,
are another person’s flowers
she is rusty, worn, tired—
and still,
beautiful
spanishwoods 