Country Living Blessings
Swaying amber wheat,
Expansive spaces,
Fresh cut red clover—
Balm for my soul.
Tasseled corn maze,
Queen Anne’s lace,
Rolling green pasture—
Soothing silence.
Meandering creek path,
Purple lilac tree perfume,
Sweet pea tendrils—
Peaceful nature.
Frolicking ginger kitty,
Colorful pegged clothes,
Night creatures’ serenade—
Joyous pleasures.
Bobwhite bobwhite,
Cicada songs,
Whip-poor-will calls—
Spiritual symphony.
Twinkling fireflies,
Illuminating moon beams,
Majestic maple trees—
My Maker’s handiwork.
By Linda A. Mohr
Country Living Blessings first appeared in Spirit, Peace and Joy, an anthology of poems published by Pen Women in 2013
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The World Parkinson Congress held a Haiku Competition for Parkinson’s Awareness Month in April, 2019. I did not win, but enjoyed creating a submission.
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Eight days after Hurricane Michael made landfall in Florida on October 10, over 120,000 customers in the Panhandle are without electricity. Here was my way of coping with Hurricane Irma in 2017 when I was without power. I wrote a poem.
Power Struggle
My tunic hangs like a limp dish rag
My skin feels like tacky glue
Day four following Hurricane Irma’s visit
I stick my head in freezer every hour
Thankful for neighbor sharing generator
Insufferable 85 degrees at 9 p.m.
Last night the houses across the street
lit up like a Dickens Christmas village
I remain in the dark
I’ve been through this before
Hurricane Wilma left me powerless for two weeks
while I stared at the neighbors’ lights for seven days
I survived but maybe now I am climate challenged
Like moving from north to south
Your blood thins and you freeze in 50 degrees
Still I must tolerate this minor inconvenience
My mother slept outside during heat wave of 1936
Laura Ingalls lived in one room for six months of blizzards
Day five the teasing continues
All houses on my side of street have blazing light
I remain in the dark
My status is now designated “special case”
But I don’t want to be special
I just want simple pleasures
Hot showers, cold drinks
78 degrees during day and 72 degrees at night
Clean clothes, sparkling dishes, cool bed linens
I pray for relief, patience and expert line workers
On the seventh day you shall have power
And thank you, I do!
–By Linda A. Mohr
Honorable Mention in Electricity Challenge, Non-Resident
First published by Highland Park Poetry
2018 Poetry Challenge
Permission granted to republish
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Dear Parkinson’s Membership Chair,
You have done it again!
You have recruited
another new member.
I did not intend to join this group.
Isn’t one million people in the United States
with Parkinson’s enough?
On May 13, 2014,
you officially notified me.
Not you exactly.
But I suspect
you were lurking in the neurologist’s office.
I want to inform you that I will not be an active member.
Take me off all distribution and call lists.
I do not want to be an officer or committee chair.
I do not want any newsletters, emails, or phone calls.
Do not waste your time on wearing me down.
I have a life to live
in semi-retirement
and that is what I intend to do.
I will not be defined
by this chronic degenerative disease.
I will invest
in my care today and not
worry about tomorrow.
I will assemble my personal board of stellar advisors:
neurologist,
movement disorder specialist,
internist,
dermatologist,
urogynecologist
chiropractor,
pharmacist,
physical therapist,
occupational therapist,
massage therapist,
speech therapist,
trainer,
nutritionist,
Tai Chi instructor,
yoga instructor, and
PD support group.
Together, we will heal my Parkinson’s disease day by day.
I will help other recruits.
I will be a beacon.
I will be grateful.
I will pray.
Living and loving life,
Linda A. Mohr
Dear Parkinson’s Membership Chair first appeared on Parkinson’s My Way blog on August 7, 2018.
