Of Earth, Wind, and Sunshine

Scratching on the door at dawn

Soft mewing when it does not open

Impatience makes both grow louder

Finally, I am roused

I pad downstairs, turn the knob

Kitty prances in

Like she owns this place

Just as she does the barn

This is a habit newly begun

When the weather had turned cold

After a long night of moonlit hunting

She is ready to nap the day away

I pick her up in way of greeting

To cuddle all the fluff she is

Inhaling deeply, my face in her fur

She smells of earth, wind, and sunshine

Her scent sparks memories of warmer days

Reminiscent of line-dried laundry

Hung the first of Spring or the last of Fall

Maybe several days in between

Line dried laundry, oh how I love the look

Of all the colors and shapes

Hanging on the length of wire fencing

Fluttering, flapping in the breeze

The hanging of the laundry

Like a meditation of sorts

Channeling the women from whom I came

Enjoying a slower way of life

When the work is done

The fence is a collection of prayer flags

My goodwill and compassion are being spread

To the family that I love

All-day long the flags hang in the sun

Absorbing its heat and energy

Taking on the smell of the grass and sky

To be collected before the fall of night

Do the others see my efforts

To conserve and preserve

As I purposefully save a dime

And a slower pace of life?

No, the gifts are all my own

There is no glory in my efforts

Only inner peace

And the smell of earth, wind, and sunshine

I miss the simplicity and the calm

The scent of fresh linens as I fall asleep

But until the warmth returns to the land

The fluff will have to fill my need