by Kat | May 4, 2026 | General, In This Moment
Hello gentle readers.
I think I am back… at least for the time being. The time away was not empty time but Thinking About All the Things time. All the things… including blogging. And though many things have moved off my life list… somehow blogging made the cut (although, it is very near the bottom of the list.)
I feel I am very much at a crossroads in my life with two forks laying in front of me. Change is never easy and the indecision of which path to choose is weighing heavily on my shoulders as I contemplate them. And so… rather than forge ahead… I have put myself into a bit of a holding pattern for the time being as I contemplate the future.
Worry for my son and his wife has kicked back into high gear again as well. Grief is a miserable bastard and as we near Mother’s Day it seems even more so. I would be ever so grateful if you all could keep them in your thoughts this week.
And now I need to get my Monday moving… I will be back on Wednesday with some finished objects and a new project!
by Kat | Apr 30, 2026 | General, Poetry
It’s been a very quiet National Poetry Month in blog-land… (you can read the full update as to why it was so quite on Kym’s post today) although, I have been reading lots of poetry. Lots of poetry. And though I am still very much in Blog Hiatus, when Kym mentioned some Lightning Round Questions, I was All In!
So, with no further ado, here are Kym’s Questions… with my answers:
When was the first time you remember being moved by a poem? Bonus points if you remember which poem.
Ahhh! It was the day some years ago when Kym shared Derek Walcott’s Love After Love. It is a poem I circle back to frequently.
Favorite nursery rhyme?
Hmm, I had to think about this one for a bit… The first one that I thought of was Little Jack Horner but I don’t know if that is my favorite. I think the one that, for me, had the best images was Humpty Dumpty all those king’s horses and men were memorable!
Favorite Mary Oliver poem? (Just one…)
Ahhh, this one is easy for me… it is The Summer Day I mean haven’t you asked yourself what you will do with your one wild and precious life?
Song lyrics: Poetry? Or something else?
I mean… aren’t all song lyrics poetry? For me, that answer is a resounding YES!
Favorite Dr. Seuss book?
One fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish! (followed in a very close second by Green Eggs and Ham!)
A poetry collection you’ve read recently?
Mmmm, The Blue House: Collected works of Tomas Tranströmer… and I loved them so much I purchased a copy of the book for my poetry library!
When do find yourself reaching for poetry most often?
I read poetry every single day… I honestly don’t know how one would get through “these times” without it. It is always the best part of the day! I also listen to poetry podcasts as well… those podcasts have introduced me to so many new-to-me poets! (And if you are wondering about which podcasts… they are The Slowdown which offers episodes M-F and is hosted by the delightful Maggie Smith, Poetry Unbound hosted by Padraig O’Tuama which is not daily, but there are seasons of episodes for one to get lost in, and Poetry for All hosted by Joanne Diaz and Abram Van Engen. It is a bit more like a class on poetry and is really so good… episodes drop monthly.)
How do you keep track of poems you especially like?
In books of poetry, I use page flags to save pages. Also, I utilize Apple Notes on my phone… I have a Poetry section that is quite full… a good thing because it is nice to have poetry handy even when I am away from my poetry library!
Favorite movie having to do with poetry?
Oof, this is a hard question. The first moving that sprung to my mind was Dead Poet’s Society. But I would not say that was a favorite movie. A movie I really enjoyed that was about a famous poet was Neruda. Which then reminded me of Il Postino… a movie I loved (and should watch again!)
Which poem are you keeping in your pocket today?
No physical poem in my pocket but I always have Fog by Carl Sandburg in my head. It is embedded deeply thanks to my beloved grandpa who recited it frequently.
I hope that you found some moments this month to read a bit of poetry. I will be back to regular blogging soon. I hope your April has been amazing!
Header photo by Ann Marie Kennon
by Kat | Apr 16, 2026 | General, Words
Keep growing quietly and seriously throughout your whole development; you cannot disturb it more rudely than by looking outward and expecting from outside replies to questions that only your inmost feeling in your most hushed hour can perhaps answer. — Rainer Maria Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet
This month I decided to pair my focus to that of what was going on around me… growth. And this quote by my beloved Rilke was my guiding light.
Quiet growth.
Nature does quiet growth brilliantly… the dandelions do not shout as they one day appear strewn across the lawn. The trees do not sing a chorus as they begin the process of leafing out.
Quiet growth.
And so I turn inward to focus on quiet growth and I realized that sometime in mid-March I crossed the invisible barrier of insomnia. I have not had a sleepless night in some weeks… I am amazed at how simple little things can make dramatic differences! What are those things? No screen time for starters! If I read at all, it is from an actual book. It is far too tempting with the iPad to just check in on emails. Or Threads. Or Instagram. And suddenly an hour has passed and I am wide awake… so the scrolling continues. No iPad means better sleep because I am allowing my brain to do what it wants to… settle down for the day. That single thing has made the largest impact on the rest of the things… because if I am not tired all the other things seem to fall into place easier.
Now, that does not mean I am oblivious to the chaos that overwhelms daily life… nor that I am not concerned about that chaos… but it means I am attempting to control how it impacts me versus allowing it to take over. Am I perfect in not falling down the rabbit hole of “news alert” scrolling? No, but I am more aware of it now and that is a big step forward!
And I continue to amble along with Adrian Bell… I love reading his thoughts on spring. His struggles with compost success, his delight in small things, his thoughts on farming… are just brilliant (and yes, at times hilarious!) And his writing encourages me to slow down and pay attention to the small changes happening every day.
I have discovered that reading “seasonal” books read slowly over the course of the season really helps me stay in the season… and that might be the best self-growth of all. I continue making my way through Poetry is not a Luxury: Poems for All Seasons and have just finished Angela Harding’s Spring Unfurled: A printmaker’s view. It was delightful and the artwork so beautiful. And I have added James Crews latest book, Breathing Room: Poems of Rest & Retreat… I am just a few poems in and already I am loving them so much. His poem, Dandelion is one of my current favorites. I have returned to it several times this month… each time I read it I notice something new. It is nice to sit in quiet contemplation of the poem as I look out over the “lucky pennies” scattered across my back yard!
Quiet growth… is never loud, but it is impactful. I also continue to make my way through Emergence Magazine’s Seasons volume. It has so many good things in it. It introduced me to Ron C. Moss, a Tasmanian poet… he is a master of the haiku. I have been trying to “grow” my skills at writing and have started with the not so simple haiku. (I’m not sure this will be the last frost of the season, but I sure am hoping it was! ha!)
Last Frost: 3.28.26
Was this weekend it?
Last gasp of winter dying
Spring keeps on swelling.
And then Bonny introduced me to the challenging Zip Ode… quiet brain growth is a very good thing. I begin by writing my zip code down the side of a scrap of paper and then begin to play with words. It is an evolving process from the start to what I feel like might be the finish. And it occurs to me that preserving the process might be an interesting thing to look back on, so I pulled out an empty journal to house my attempts. It is a good thing to see growth… I don’t always notice it. Yesterday mornings attempt… and a reminder my zip code is 15243:
Wind
blows the rain on windows
I wake
and listen until the
patter becomes lullaby.
The final quiet growth this season… I have begun a correspondence with a friend… yes, letter writing back and forth. It is more fun than I ever imagined! I love getting her letters and I love sending a missive back to her. Quiet conversation… slow, unhurried, simple.
And with that my friends, I am going to continue my quiet growth journey this month… I will be back. I am not sure when, but I expect it will be sometime in early May!
by Kat | Apr 15, 2026 | General, Unraveled Wednesday
Greetings dear Unravelers!
Another Wednesday and the familiar rhythm of sharing making a reading is a good thing!
Since last week, I made the decision to put away the Waffle Pullover until the fall. I made some very good notes and pinned them to the Waffle Pullover (along with the annotated pattern) and put it away for the season. I will resume banging knitting in September. I even reminded myself with a notation on the calendar on Labor Day to get it out to finish!
My knitting has mostly been focused on getting through the LONG stretch of the Great Long Middle of the Floating Squares Wrap. It’s a LOT of knitting and I am almost back to the “shorter” end segments! Maybe I will have this done this month!
Although there is no picture, the morning beading continues and I am so so so close to the finish! I just have one final rectangle to go! This seriously has been an insane amount of fun! I have never stitched with beads before and, gentle readers, it is a wonder! I would never have described myself as a “bling person” but I think I might have been wrong! Hahaha! If you all remember, I took a stitching class last year with Natalie Chanin through MDK and have a scarf kit. I stitched the sampler quickly but the scarf kit has seen no love. Well… that scarf now has a plan… and it includes a bit of beading. So… the morning stitching/beading will continue!
The finished sampler, I will begin some practice beading soon!
The reading… oh my… the reading! I finished Theo of Golden and, dear friends, this is the best book… and will likely remain the best book I read all year! Quite seriously… beautiful writing… stunning characters… and a story that will embed itself in your heart and mind. It is a story about kindness… truly, just the simplicity of kindness and how being kind can change the world around you. I cried for most of the last 2 hours (I listened to David Morse read it… and I am stunned he was not dissolved in tears!) The afterward by the author was also so moving… an idea that came to being found a 70-ish year old man becoming a writer. Don’t think life is over when you turn 65!! Allen Levi proves that theory entirely wrong! I am eagerly awaiting the sequel to Theo… Ellen of Golden. Friends, if you think this book is “religious” it is not… I would rather say this is a book of the power of kindness and how that can make a difference. Levi plants several Easter Eggs in the book as well… which added to the richness and depth of how perfectly the story is woven together! I am telling everyone I meet to read Theo of Golden. I highly recommend it!
Now for a bit of housekeeping… after tomorrow when I will post my April Word update, I am taking a bit of a blogging break. I won’t be posting here for the remainder of April and that will likely flow well into May. I am hopeful that a bit of a prolonged break will be just the thing I need to reset myself.
How is April’s making and reading going for you all?
As always, if you wrote a post to share please leave your link below and thank you!
by Kat | Apr 13, 2026 | General, In My Backyard, In This Moment
It was an amazing weekend for landings!
There was a successful splashdown for the Artemis II… and yes, I watched the entire thing until I saw all four astronauts exit the capsule. The images of the final parachute deployment was stunning… those three billowy parachutes slowly the capsule and gently placing them into the ocean. It is a very good thing to be back in space in this unique way… back to the moon where it all began. And then on Saturday, I wholeheartedly committed to get on the Joy Train!
NASA’s Orion spacecraft with Artemis II crewmembers NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, commander; Victor Glover, pilot; Christina Koch, mission specialist; and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, mission specialist aboard is seen as it lands in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California, Friday, April 10, 2026. NASA’s Artemis II mission took Wiseman, Glover, Koch, and Hansen on a 10-day journey around the Moon and back to Earth. Following a splashdown at , NASA, U.S. Navy, and U.S. Air Force teams are working to bring the crewmembers and Orion spacecraft aboard USS John P. Murtha. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
AND!!!
The Pileated has landed!!
Friday morning, I got the massive suet feeder up and on Saturday morning while I was in the kitchen puttering… I heard that distinctive call and looked up and there was the Pileated Woodpecker back on the telephone pole and within seconds it was soaring in to land on the suet!! I was so awestruck, I did not even think of trying to snap a photo! I have remained vigilant to watching for them… and was rewarded with multiple visits! A brave female is the visitor thus far… she has no red patches on her cheeks.
I have named her Christina… of course! Huzzah to brave females everywhere!
Dear friends, I love birdwatching so much and my absolute favorite of all the birds are the Picidae (woodpecker,) and especially those in the Dryocopus (Pileated Woodpecker) family. To say I am elated is an understatement… and couple this with the splashdown… well, it was A Weekend for the ages!!
Oh… and my seat on the Joy Train is quite comfortable! Happy Monday everyone!
Header photo by Chris F
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