Overheard on the trail.
Lower Lake,
Cleveland Heights /Shaker Heights, Ohio.
November 23, 2025
“They would never drain it…”
“I hope not, son…”
“ Uh Dad, what’s that!?”
“A belted kingfisher!”
…attempting to imitate its call.
“We are so lucky….” declared the boy,
“Let’s come back tomorrow…
and bring mom.”
Mysterious Visitors
Flower fueled rivalry,
Criss-crossing the marsh.
touch the edge of petals,
then off like shooting stars.
Jewelweed fading
and the Swamp Rose.
The last of the summer nectar,
Ruby season to close.
Question: from Cleveland,
how do you pass over the Gulf,
cross the Tropic of Cancer
and find the Mosquito Coast?
Anyway, until your next reveal,
a toast:
May your hovering light
have your back.
See you May first.
Adios!
Shaking Off Summer
That Sunday evening feeling,
reality sinking in.
Waiting in line
for ice cream.
It’s hot, glaciers are receding.
A community of strangers,
focusing on their favorite flavor
and air conditioning.
Don’t mind my Sunday blues,
Back to work, Back to school
No whining on the yacht.
I’m getting a large Tin Roof.
Did they just cut in line? It’s fine.
The good people’s kids
are flattening the hostas.
Welcome to my opera.
Overhead, a circling toy train.
An uninterrupted supply chain, tariff free,
except for the Belgian and French ingredients, Spanish peanuts,
and the maraschino cherry.
Whatever it costs,
warm and cool melding,
Salty and sweet, smooth and crunchy.
The summer light is ending.
Daughter off to college,
son starting high school.
They grew up so fast. Who knew?
I’ll take a look at that evening class.
We all had the same idea.
I scream, you scream,
they’re out of whipping cream?
It’s fine.
I ate the whole thing.
It’s Fall. Summer is over.
My new best friend
is a glass of water.
Here’s to your take.
Whatever season we’re in.
May your next sundae
come with
a three day weekend.
As a kid,
at the center of our house
was an old round glowing Zenith.
Black-and-white
was enough
to suspend all disbelief
and promote
at least two childish fears.
Standing too close to dinosaurs in a fight
and quick sand.
Both made more vivid recently
at my local park.
The former;
A free for all
head to head
blue heron clash
Any closer
I would’ve been splashed.
The latter;
more like I imagined.
Alone, sinking in mud
of an unknown depth,
required my
yelling “HELP!”.
A startled jogger
saved my camera and lens
probably me.
A MacGyver rerun
was also helpful.
My earliest formative television:
Lost in Space, Get Smart, Petticoat Junction, Bewitched, I Dream of Jeannie, Gilligan’s Island, Hogan’s Heroes, Green Acres, Batman, Gomer Pyle, and F Troop,
not so much.
It was a long walk back to the car.
The defeated heron
fished another day.
I survived a few fears
and possibly
that old round glowing
Zenith.
My Bird Teacher
Something to see.
The eyes and iridescence,
In the dull gray leaves,
a grackle’s oasis.
Wholly underrated,
smart, strong, social but invasive,
in gardens where more desirable
birds are awaited.
In the unofficial hierarchy,
there is a fledgling to feed,
ready for anything,
father finds buried.
Nature is like common sense,
no tricks, no illusions or hocus-pocus.
A bird’s strengths,
come into focus.
Using its beak on the problem,
through layers and layers,
rich earth rewards,
a bird on a mission.
The saying,
“Leave the Leaves”
Big for us, the bees and a grackle.
Sometimes doing nothing is half the battle.
We’re just visiting,
the pollinator’s truth.
Spraying chemicals and endless clearing,
kills everything and the butterflies too.
While my lawn,
is not glowing green.
Its quieter, cozier
and not so mean.
Maybe I’m hypocrite,
but a better neighbor.
Before October, full disclosure,
saying goodbye,
to the gas powered leaf blower.
For now, adios!
Through the noise and smoke,
Happy Fourth!
Wishing you a clear view,
to your true north.
#grackle #true #teacher #leaves #eyes #community #commonsense #leaf #leafblower #hierarchy #cozy #lawn #lawncare #bird #father
Mr. Wizard
Wildlife crossing or not,
a road or a sidewalk
is an impossible hurdle
for a baby snapping turtle.
For my efforts at redirecting,
I turned instead to turtle relocation,
which selfishly included
a brief photo session.
A visit to the house
in a cardboard box
with holes, water and a grass bed.
I called in to a reptile expert friend.
It all went swimmingly,
as you can see,
private time in the bird basin, fresh lettuce, a meeting with my family.
Soon it was time to leave
and return to the lake,
but not before we named him
Sir Francis Drake.
Now, he knew
right where to go
with the instinct of a baby sea turtle
on a PBS nature special.
And just like that,
as the saying goes,
“Drizzle, Drazzle, Druzzle, Drone”
he was safely back in his watery home.
Now I’m part of the sequence.
Brings to mind “everything’s connected“,
clearly an understatement.
He’s on the quieter side of the lake,
I think will make it.
So Many threats, some we can lessen
but not hovering seagulls, or the bird
with the long beak:
the great blue heron.
I’ve read, snapping turtles
can live longer than most people
and if they’re careful,
a lifespan that’s nearly double.
If you’ve read this far,
this might have some resonance.
If you’re around my age,
you might get my obscure cartoon reference.
If you’d like to reply
to my posted poetic stint.
In comments, write the cartoon’s title.
A random winner, receives a signed, archival,
Robert Muller print.
Meanwhile, I’m following the trail,
natures beautiful arc,
our new holy grail,
getting to know the local public park.
Have a great weekend ! #shakerlakes #turtles #snappingturtle #lost #found
Invitation
Once around the lake,
a menagerie, my happy place.
Traversing the marshy blues and greens
where the wood ducks
always find me.
A redbud, a pair of red wings,
warm and cool juxtaposing.
To a warbler’s voice,
add a downy drumming.
A mallard leap,
a crowning splash,
a decisive moment to keep.
An oriole searching branch to branch.
Jumping and fluttering on repeat.
A blur of orange and green,
reveals a tiny worm underneath.
If you like,
take a budding birders advice.
Stay low, get close, lean in.
Take your camera or just be.
Honestly, it helps to be
a little sneaky.
Another loop around,
springs fleeting view.
Sometimes more than you’re expecting.
When nature opens up to you.
#spring #nature #happy #decisivemoment #mallard #oriole #poem
A fragile vista,
wings dot the sky.
Our symbol of freedom
waving hello and goodbye.
Yes, eagles were nearly dismissed.
Only careful science and policy
got them off the list.
Gliding down,
circling around,
with only a glance
the camera turned
into a very long stare.
As if to say…
WAKE UP AMERICA! #baldeagle #eagle #naturephotography #freedom
Redwing signals
Springs first song
The migration is pending
Winter moves along
Redwing warning
A brave defense
The season awakens
A hidden nest
Redwing calling
A familiar refrain
The sun is warming
Its’ settled domain
Shaker Lakes early April 2024
Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
#Naturephotography
#Birding
#Birdwatching
#Photography
#Blackbirds
#Birdlovers
#Naturelovers
#Poetry
#Poetrycommunity
#Poem
#Spring
#Printforsale
#love
#art
#photography
#Instagram
Knock Knock…
Who’s there?
A cuckoo clock ? A scene from a Hitchcock?
Joking aside, my ID can be tricky.
Let’s start with a little about me.
Year round, I live near you.
A dinosaur descendant,
I have a room with a view.
I survived the meteoric aftershock.
66 million years later, wish me luck
with the flu and this weather.
I have speckled spots on my tail,
if you could see.
Unlike the Hairy, my feathered facsimile.
They say we all have a double out there,
but the Hairy is longer, larger, louder
and more rare.
Until next time,
through the perils of rhyme,
something to remember,
I’m the agile and adaptable Downy Woodpecker. #knockknockjokes #cuckoo #hitchcock #dinosaur #roomwithaview #flu #doppleganger #downy #rhymes
