Slice of Life Round and Round

Inspiration

Today, I am once again thankful for the everyday things: a coffee maker, a dishwasher, electricity, running and clean water. Soon, we’ll need to bring out the hose and begin the garden and lawn watering, and thankful to have a lawn and garden and home.

I remember that old soap opera my mother watched, and my dad, who came home for lunch from work to sit and watch “As the World Turns…” Soap operas are not my thing— I like a good mystery. We finally broke down to watch Downton Abby, but I get bored when it starts to be soap-opera like— or when good people become not so, and the bad guy never learns why his life is always so miserable.

But the truth is, the world does keep turning, spinning around while we humans keep our paths, some of bounding joy and some of fear and some in between. And we seem to make the same mistakes.

• Mask or not— 1918 or 2022.
• Discrimination — 1860, 1960, today.
• War— will we never solve issues with the intellect, grace, and language of our being? And why not? Why not.

So today, I looked for circles, for going round and round over and over again. I found a picture I took of our garden hose in late spring— loosely wound on the ground, round and round.

Writing Process

What is it I’m feeling?

• We’re still in a pandemic; fewer cases, but restrictions lifted: individuals take their own care. Frustration. Disappointment.
• Spring is beautiful, but summer comes after. We don’t call it summer any more; we call it fire season. We’re in the worst drought ever in modern times. Climate change. Fearful.
• An invasion. A dictator invades another independent country. War. A war against humanity and for power and greed. Disgusting. Disheartening.

What do I know?

• One great uncle died during the 1918 epidemic: my parents lived. We overcame.
• Many local area residents are trained fire fighters and travel to fight fires. We have knowledge, preparation, and heroes.
• Wars ended. This war will too.

And, gratitude.

• And, remember the gratitude:
• for all things in our everyday that once were a dream:
• an ink pen, a paved road, instant communication, medicine, systems of electricity, water, plumbing, news.

Hope is in the turning. It’s already tomorrow in Australia.

And so the poem began, broken into segments of turns, until the hope for tomorrow emerged.

So, when sitting down to write, sort out the worries but also the possibilities. Connect to memories. Consider appreciations. Take a look at the free writing, the memories, the concepts, and find the kernel of truth— in this case that the world keeps turning, and so do we, even through difficult times, we find the way through in our tomorrows.

Poetry

Round and Round
Round and round
The world turns

Spinning sorrows,
plights, and fights,

Come tomorrows
The world learns

Fresh insights
For earth our home

Today, tomorrow
The world grows

In human rights
People unite

For tomorrow
The future turns
Round and round.

Sheri Edwards  
030922   068.365.22  
Poetry/Photography