Another Day Begins by Jane Goldman captures the mundane yet meaningful routine of starting a new day. Mother Nature Mothering by Nicole Freezer reflects on a moment of connection with nature and contemplates whether this is a call to maintain her faith. Unexpected Delight by Carol Ostrow is a serendipitous encounter that sparks a potential romantic connection. Learning for the Next Step by Madlyn Epstein Steinhart emphasizes the importance of continuous learning and open-mindedness. And Marjorie J. Levine shares her prowess with Haikus.

Another Day Begins

Another day begins.

 My alarm rings.

I look at the clock

It’s my usual time to get up.

With much effort

I get up and out of bed. 

I go into the bathroom. 

I look at my face

I’m grateful that I still recognize it.  

I wash it. 

I brush my teeth 

I put on my makeup.

I go into the kitchen. 

I turn on the lights.

I press the button on the coffee machine I set up the night before.

I put milk in the froth machine and then into my coffee. 

I take my coffee to my computer and begin drinking it.

I check the weather.

I check my emails.

I reach for my phone.

I check for unreturned calls.

I make them if any, among others.

I go back to my unmade bed 

Longing to go back in it.

But decide instead 

To make it.

I choose and put on my clothes for the day. 

I reach for and put on my shoes.

I put on my coat, my scarf if needed.

I open my front door and leave. 

But before I do:

I take a deep breath and 

I thank God for every single, annoying, monotonous thing I just did.

As it meant another day did begin.  

                and 

I leave my apartment with the fervent hope of

Repeating every single, annoying, monotonous thing I did 

Tomorrow morning as that would mean

Another day also begins. 

And for that I will always be  grateful. 

~Jane Goldman, author “With No Regrets: Growing Older, Face It, Live It, Love It”

Mother Nature Mothering

The wind is blowing.

I am tapped by a tree,

a finger of God

signaling me out for something,

but what?

Is it to tell me to keep my conviction

as each passing day

since October 7^th

makes me question,

or is it to push me further along

the faithful road I am on?

~Nicole Freezer Rubens, author “The Long Pause and the Short Breath”

Unexpected Delight

How is it possible that life changes on a dime,

When you never expected it at all at the time?

Suddenly, there he was at the elevator door,

Saying, “Hi, you also going to my same floor”?

Our eyes locked and we smiled at each other,

There was no room then to run for cover,

In a split second our lives intertwined,

We were both going out that evening to dine,

In the same place at exactly the same time,

He is tall with a full head of wavy gray hair,

Blue eyes twinkling with a straightforward stare,

Very handsome, quickly thinking, just my type,

Wearing a blue suit with a thin white stripe,

We saw each other briefly, over the course of a week,

On a vacation in Munich, for the love of operas we seek,

Having so much in common we do discover,

I’m already thinking he’s my next possible lover,

We exchanged numbers wanting to keep in touch,

Of course I googled him and liked the info so much,

Is he in my future or just a passing dream,

Do I even want to develop this theme?

What fun and of course, yes I do,

It’s been too long since I was two by two!

~Carol Ostrow, author “Poems from My Pandemic Pen” and “Poetry in Motion with Much Emotion”

Learning for the Next Step

You should learn something daily
No matter your degrees and education
You don’t know it all and probably never will
As we evolve and move forward
We learn from history but we don’t live there and perhaps should not
Dwell on what was and what might have been
Let it go
No matter how you learn just don’t stop
Age brings wisdom but not all the answers
What is fake are those that are one-sided and set in their ways
You should believe as you wish but judging others based on that ia another story
An old one
Open your mind
Read
Experience things you never gave a second thought to delving into
Give Social Media and AI a rest
You will hopefully be surprised and learning for the next step

~Madlyn Epstein Steinhart, author “Put Your Boots on and Dance in the Rain” and “Beautiful Heart”

FAMILY SPOTS

Lakewood keeps lights on

The corners bend to the back

The back holds the dark

The bus was empty

An old man rode a blue bike

Red Bank faded back

~Marjorie Levine, author “Road Trips” and “Becoming Until”