"oregonian" poems
Looking out the window I was transfixed by the trees
The outside edge of a vast forest
It was autumn and I admired the various colors of the leaves
I felt as if I were on pins and needles
Preparing to go out and commune with nature
As was the way with those of us blessed to live in Oregon
I have always lived in Oregon
Though I have traveled to many different forests
Often I am struck by the difference in the leaves
As I wander through my home away from home, nature
Stopping often to examine the trees
Crush and smell the needles
There is nothing like the smell of fresh Fir needles
When standing in a temperate rain forest
Like the one we have here in Oregon
Looking out across the tops of the trees
Entranced by the turning Oak leaves
Becoming one with the surrounding nature
It is such a blessing to have a relationship with nature
And fairly easy if one chooses to live in Oregon
You needn’t have love for forests
Or a desire to play amongst the leaves
The eastern desert has Juniper needles
And small scrub-brush trees
The Oregon coast has wind-swept trees
With branches stretched and tattered leaves
We find the smell of pine when crushing these needles
Along the Pacific in beautiful Oregon
And while the difference is vast within nature
It is all part of the greater Oregon forest
I stood content, as a part of the forest
Rooted to the spot I stood I became one with the trees
Beneath me lay the softest bed of spruce needles
I thought, “I am living as part of, and in tandem with, nature,
this is what it is to be an Oregonian”
I stretched out my fingers and they became as the leaves
Contemplating Oregon and its various coniferous needles
The natural beauty surrounded me like a thick stand of trees
And the forest held me close, as if I were a freshly opened leaf
Jan 25, 2016
Jan 25, 2016 at 5:40 PM UTC
America.
Oregon.
Eugene.
***** hippies,
Homeless kids,
Handcrafted knickknacks
For sale at Saturday Market.
Rain
Rain
Rain
Rain some more.
These tourists cannot
Perceive how happy
The rain makes me,
When their droplets of
Life fall and surround me.
They do not have
That Oregonian Blood.
I have ducks in my heart,
And rain water
Courses through my veins.
I am a Country Fair girl.
I am a Eugene Girl.
I will be an Oregonian forever.
Portland may not be
As quaint,
As *****
As close knit.
But,
When it rains,
I get chills.
I kick off my shoes,
And I dance in the
Glorious lifeblood
of my home.
Feb 25, 2013
Feb 25, 2013 at 4:44 PM UTC
i took a drive up to the mountains
stopped near a dense part of the forest
casting my eyes over the forest floor I noticed the ferns
and even as I sat in the pouring rain
looking around for elusive Chanterelles
i felt at peace and at home
not an hour ago I had left my home
and here I was deep in the mountains
never one to be deterred by the rain
i stepped out amongst the ferns
becoming part of the forest
i spotted my first Chanterelles
oh! how I love to pick chanterelles
on the floor of the thick, dark forest
lost in a valley of ferns
with just of touch of cool Oregon rain
no thoughts for the worries of my home
just me, communing with the mountains
from before I could walk I played in these mountains
remembering my youth and vast forests
tucking behind my ear the frawn of a fern
tasting the nutty peppered flavor of fresh Chanterelles
truly, this was my real home
an Oregonian child at peace in the rain
brought back to the present by a large drop of rain
i thought about my family at home
and their connection to these same mountains
and while they did not love Chanterelles
they very much enjoyed playing among the ferns
in this special part of the forest
few things hold a place in my heart like this forest
or the beautiful orange grow of a new Chanterelle
i breathe in deep my home away from home
enjoying each and every drop of falling rain
looking across the range of mountains
sprinkled with soft and gentle ferns
i left my home in search of chanterelles
but was captivated by the mountains and made whole by the rain
in the societal forest, I am but a fern
Jan 13, 2016
Jan 13, 2016 at 5:07 PM UTC
my face hurts
looking at my countrymen
and the insanity that is rampant
we allow our government to **** innocents
in the name of safety
while leaving those of us most at risk
to wallow in the dank, squalor
that is untreated mental illness –
all the conversation is about regulation
of tools, equipment, merchandise
when we need to be discussing the de-funding
of federal and state facilities
here’s an idea:
give tax breaks to doctors working with this population
incentivize the public to work together in bridging these gaps in society
not out of fear, but love for our fellow man –
a deranged soul bent on ******
will find a way to ****
as sure as the sun shines
and hardware stores sell hammers
inconceivable homicidal events
will be part of the new United States culture….
seriously, look at what we put in our bodies
both as food and medication
how could anyone expect that all of us would stay
well-adjusted
and pro-social –
there is another angle
even more sinister and devious that just leaving crazy people
to freely roam the streets without so much as a check in
and it lives in the realm of conspiracy
and within the walls of the lunatic fringe surrounding society at large
it holds the notion that somewhere between HAARP
the CIA, the NSA, the FBI,
combined with shadow operatives
of the illuminati and new world order
have been periodically tapping individuals
with the proper mental state to preform horrific acts
with the agenda of furthering certain political ideology
while concurrently undermining the freedoms and liberties
that make the United States of America a beacon of hope
to the poor and disenfranchised across the globe…..
how, you ask, does this happen….
Sandy Hook,
Umpqua Community College,
Zimmerman,
mass media pushing the hype train
to the top of Everest
and sending that som’ma’ma’bitch sailing into the masses
with a new scotch, neat, in hand
they watch us flounder and fight
laughing all the way
to the safety of their
underground fortresses –
Oct 5, 2015
Oct 5, 2015 at 4:09 PM UTC
my color keeps me safe
and warm
entrenched in a racist system
of hate values organized as political movement
try as I might,
there is no relationship between myself
and the larger country around me –
born Oregonian
only about 3 million of us as a state
the majority of the geography
votes red
the mass of the populace
lives in Portland proper
and makes the laws for the state
blue laws….
we are predominately white
predominantly rural
predominantly not well educated
welcome to my state –
no amount of reading
researching
or watching lamestream media
could ever gift me
with real understanding
of a ghetto
or poverty as it exists nationally…
we have homeless encampments
and minority communities
just small scale –
darting eyes scan the landscape
seeking connection to the national issues
attempting to relate to federal politics
finding instead
my lawn needs mowed
and my dogs need fed –
I am sure there are many of us
Caucasians
who would fight for solutions
who would stand of injustice
those of us who long to truly know the United States as free
as the land of liberty
and equality
as today,
those are myths I was told as a child
myths that not every American household uses
to put fussy children to bed –
May 23, 2016
May 23, 2016 at 5:26 PM UTC