Down between the polished wood floorboards
in the dank sweetness of moist ageless earth
My heart beats the rhythm of my chosen home.
I stood one August on the grassy slope by the apple tree
stared at the staccato mountain peaks looming over the roof
and claimed this piece of the world to be mine for awhile
Mine, shared with the teeming life under and above the grass that grew wild
My home, among dandelions, squirrels, skunks, junipers, apples, plums and birds
I staked my claim and began to build my world
Here.
At first we felt like outsiders
Arranging, exploring, planning
Working, returning tired to unfamiliarity
Waiting for "home" to arrive
Seven years of breathing have changed the air in the house
Breathing my breath onto the woodwork, garden paths and paint on the walls
Breathing in the breath of trees, cat, dog, bunnies, husband, grandsons
Breathing out my dreams and desires
Breathing in their gradual fulfillment
Dented, worn dining table remembers family feasts of thanks-giving
Quiet meals of mourning
Candles spilling wax in glowing darkness
Art projects dripping glue, and that little gouge mark
Gatherings of bright-eyed friends birthing plans onto paper
Annual drying of a dismayed cat after her bath
And always newspaper mornings with tea
I light a fire, straighten my favorite painting, sweep the walk again
I no longer notice the click-hum of the furnace
Backyard graves of furry beloveds nourish the new spring growth
Fox and deer know my routines as I know theirs
The earth knows my heartbeat, here in my chosen home.
7 comments:
Very nice, Bonnie. The photo of the (elk? deer?) is amazing.
Thanks, Phil. That's one of our local mule deer, with a broken leg, eating apples off our tree. Sadly, the deer get hit with cars way too often. Every year we have at least one with a dangling leg and/or broken antler. We love them, even though they eat in our garden.
oh, and by the way, that's no trick photography. Gary walked right up to the deer, just 4 feet away, and took this photo! They know us to be their friends.
Oh Bonnie, your words and photos mesh perfectly together, what a gorgeous meditation. I love your mule deer, and Gary looks so patient "herding" the bunny. Adorable!
You have such a pretty home, you are blessed.
Birdie, you're exactly right about herding Ziggy! We let them run in the yard, and then herd them back into the house when the sun starts to go down. Herding is not an easy task, but it is lots of fun.
The rare black fox is one of the ones who lives in the hedges next door. It may even be the fox who killed Bugs and Shasta. We have a love/hate relationship with them... they're such beautiful, graceful animals - but they ate our bunnies - but that's what foxes do, etc.
Thanks for the compliment! We love our little kingdom, too.
A heartfelt testimony to home & family, Bonnie, & a notably American one too: there are few territories left in these isles that would inspire so powerful a synthesis of human settlement & nature.
Bonnie, this is my first visit to your blog, which I found by doing a search for Greek Americans in the world. I'm an American from the west coast now in Athens.
Just looking to connect with people and found your home really beautiful. Nature and trees is my thing, which is the reason I think about returning, but with housing prices as they are, I don't see how it'll be possible.
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