On Wonder

Night wind

/ Fran Haley / Leave a comment

Leaving the church
in the dark
after the kids
practiced their carols

the wind whipped
sudden
and cold

sending dry dead leaves
skittering ahead
across the sidewalk

just an hour ago
the air was damp
and warm
after the storm

but now
in its last hours
November
is being yanked
like the open door
by a greater authority
on the other side

December
manifesting itself
majestically
galloping in
on the night wind
laced with
biting chill

underneath
the clear black sky
where bright stars and planets
are still

The Dark Of Night. MarcCooper_1950. CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.

Autumn wings haiku

/ Fran Haley / Leave a comment

Familiar cheeping
at dusk, out on the front porch
-can it really be?

Opening the door
a fluttering of feathered wings
-the finches remain?

Should I be so blessed?
I shall need to buy some seed
for the frost has come.

House Finch with Goldfinch. beaucon. CC BY-NC 2.0.

House finches are regular nesters in my front door wreath from Eastertime through the summer; I have not been aware of their remaining so close by in the autumn months. They aren’t nesting now and as yet I haven’t ascertained where exactly they’re living, only that it’s somewhere near the porch. I see them fly when we pull up in the driveway, and when we open the front door. I can’t even get a good look at them; they’re being evasive.

Their presence lifts my spirit immeasurably: Take heart, be of good cheer, we are still here… the fluttering of wings was so near my face when I opened the door in the dark after hearing the familiar bird voice. It wasn’t alarming. Out in the yawning chasm of night flew the little bird, with my soul tethered to it by inexplicable hope.

Stargazing

/ Fran Haley / Leave a comment

The Boy and I
are stargazing
with our SkyView
phone apps

reading names:

Dabih

Mirzam

Capella

Aldebaran

Taygeta

Elnath

Tien Kwan

Betelgeuse

Fomalhaut

Altair

Vega

Deneb

the Pleiades

—makes me remember
that God knows all the stars
and calls them by name
I tell The Boy.

His face is turned up
toward the glittering heavens

after a long moment
he speaks:

I wonder what names
they are.

—Me, too, Boy.

He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name. – Psalm 147:4

Planets

/ Fran Haley / 2 Comments

The Boy and I
walking under
the evening sky:
he notes the bright, bright star
glittering high

—not a star, say I
that’s Jupiter

and that’s Saturn,
right over there—

I take out my phone
open an app
hold it to the sky
aim at these ‘stars’

up pop the planets
on the fly

—oh, the awe
in The Boy’s eyes—

he shows me his watch
I didn’t know
he’d set its face
to the solar system
planets positioned in orbits
line by line:

I know where they are
but I didn’t know I
could actually see them
in the sky

—what app is that??

—SkyView, say I

in an instant
The Boy has downloaded it
and is turning every which way
phone pointed
at the night sky

—Mars is right there
by the streetlight! he cries

I LOVE this,
says he,
by and by

I watch him
with a sigh
remembering how
he first fell in love
with planets
around age five

The Boy’s solar system artwork, created for me about twenty years ago.
It remains taped to the back of my bedroom door.

Flightline

/ Fran Haley / 3 Comments

I was only halfway watching
when I heard the frenzied pitch
of announcers’ voices on TV

I looked, then, to see
the horse
that beautiful bay
breaking away from others
with unparalleled grace
with uncommon ease

—just like Secretariat!
cried the announcers

—oh, very much like him,
I thought, holding my breath
tears stinging my eyes
at a loss for any word
except glorious

crossing the finish line
the others far behind
undefeated Flightline
clearly is of
divine design

Flightline wins the Breeder’s Cup Classic by the largest margin in the history of the race

All Hallows’ Eve

/ Fran Haley / 1 Comment

misty mystic morn
divine light, cloud-flaming bright
holy hope reborn

I cannot recall ever seeing a rainbow on Halloween before. This morning, there it was, gleaming bright in the clouds. Thus begins Allhallowtide, the age-old Christian tradition of prayerfully remembering those who have died.

One year

/ Fran Haley / 3 Comments

Looking back…

every day a wonder
every day a celebration
every day new

because of you

beautiful
independent-minded
serious
precious
kiss-blowing
dog-adoring
music-loving
beatbox attempting (!!)

baby girl

one whole year
of life transformed
by exponential love
every day

on this day
praise to God on high
for the profound gift
of you

my prayer
on looking back
at every day
of this past year
is wrapped with thanksgiving
and tied with the ribbon
of utter joy
for all our days to come

looking forward

Happy first birthday, Micah. With so much love, every day – Franna

Autumn glory

/ Fran Haley / 3 Comments

This morning
was glorious

the strange autumn slant of light
catching the red-gold-orange flames
of trees, reaching their limbs
up to a brooding gray sky
meeting still-green fields
at the horizon

such a study in color
that I, mere mortal observer,
lost myself in the awe
of indescribable beauty

I could have lived
a thousand years
and not lost my breath
as I did this morning

marveling
wondering
at how such a beautiful world
can be so broken

Autumn Landscape. blmiers2. CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.