I am living
In a country
That I no longer recognize,
Where bullies
In
Their
Masks
Terrorize those
With dark skin
And accents.
Oh, and murder
A White woman
At the wrong place,
Wrong time.
I am living
In a country
Where cruelty
Reigns
I am
Sick with
Fear
For people
I don’t
Even know,
And my
Tears
Won’t
stop.
I am
Raging.
God help us!
“God helps those who help themselves,”
Said Ben.
And, you know,
He signed
The Declaration
“God helps those
Who help
Themselves…we hold these
Truths…”
Hope-
Swept up in
This storm,
I’m clinging
To the branch that
HCR AOC Jasmine
JimmyStephenJon
Robert Bernie
And others
Hold out—
I am grasping
Category: Uncategorized
At the end of the rainbow
The other day, I discovered what is at the end of the rainbow:
It’s an unexpected jolt of joy.
Breathe love in, breathe love out
I just posted the following words to my Facebook page, and I decided to include them here on my Dandelion Parachutes Blog, as well. I know some of my Facebook friends will now see this in two places, but I want to put this out there for others, for what it’s worth. I don’t have a huge following for my Blog. Wah, wah, wah! No, not really. I am comfortable with the readers that read my words. It’s ok. Really! From the bottom of my heart, thank you to all 31 of my subscribers! I love you all! But sometimes to my surprise, I see that someone from Sweden or Ireland or China has read my Blog. I have to say, I get a thrill every time I see that some stranger from far away has read my words, and I hope that they have come away with a positive vibe. Anyway, here are my thoughts on the current events here in the USA:
“What’s on your mind, Jennie?” my Facebook post page just asked. So, Facebook, here is what is on my mind:
You may find this hard to believe, but I didn’t know anything about Charlie Kirk before he died. I was completely oblivious because I stay away from Christian Nationalist pundits. I consider myself a Christian, though more and more, I imagine that our Creator is not a masculine being. No offense to any men who might be reading this, but really? I think God must be gender neutral. (I know, I know. I’ve read the Bible, the entire Bible-but I’ve formed my own opinions. You can judge me if you want, but Jesus probably wouldn’t.)
I feel terribly sad for anyone who is shot down/killed by someone else. I also pray for the shooter. I can’t imagine how you come to a place in your life that that is your best option. I pray for both families. Just consider for a moment the strength it took for this young man’s father to come forward and condemn his son. He is living his hardest moments right now, I imagine.
I started off blaming President Trump for all the division in this country, but I’m editing my post.
There has been too much hatred and division- much of it driven by social media – which is leading to more and more loneliness, violence, and desperation. I have my beliefs, but for today I feel a need to step away from it all and to breathe love in and breathe love out, as Adriene, my on-line Yoga instructor, tells me to do. That sounds simplistic, doesn’t it? Maybe it is that simple. Anyway, I know that there is too much hatred in this world, and I don’t have a better solution than that right now.
Yoga with Adriene -this video helped me regain some equilibrium today.
Wishing you peace in your heart today.
The Thing About Travel
Sept 5, 2025
The thing about travel,
I think,
Is this:
You get to
Take your
Mind for
A ride
As well
As your
Body.
Breathe
The air,
Eat the
Figs
Fresh
From the tree,
Hear the waves
On Lake Michigan
Or is it Huron?
Where does one stop
And the other
Begin?
Go to the island
Where they
Only ride horses
And bikes.
Why not?
See that gorgeous
Graveyard
Sanctuary
Dripping with moss
And azaleas;
Watch
The sea lions
And dolphins.
Hike the hills!
Hold your purse
close
As you gaze at
The Sistine
Chapel--
There are
Pickpockets
there,
Don’t you know?
Count the windows
In the old red
Covered bridge
Just across
The county border;
Up in the wilds
You will discover
A slight
Discomfort
As you lose
Your GPS--
That’s ok,
Civilization
Isn’t that far away,
And depending
On your definition,
Maybe the deer
Are the most
Civil of us all.
The thing is
You don’t have
To travel far
To see new worlds,
Meet good people,
And
Find yourself
A little different,
a little better
For the
Journey.
Wherever you are, thank you for pausing here.
Not OK
Hard to face the fact these days that people in America are being sent to a hellhole in the Everglades just for being who they are.
Hard to smile knowing that the President and the Vice HATE me because of who I am – a Democrat.
Cruelty seems to be in fashion now. This is who we are now, and I am not ok with that.
A Thorn
I promise myself
That I will be
A thorn in their side,
No,
A thorn in their
Palm,
So that
Every time
They pick up their pen
Or raise their hand,
They will be reminded
That someone
Said
No–
Don’t do that
Cruel thing,
Don’t make
That
Mistake
That will
Hurt
So many.
I was never
Much of a rose…
But I can be a thorn.
Thank you for reading this. I’m wishing you peace in your heart today.
I wish for words today
November 7, 2024
I wish for words today
I wish for words today--
Words to make you
Brave
If you are
Feeling scared,
Words to make you
Happy
If you are
Feeling sad,
Words to give you peace
If you are angry
As a cornered wasp.
I wish to give
You comfort,
As we grieve
A might-have-been
Together.
Maybe that’s
The ticket,
That’s the word
Amongst the good ones--
Love, hope,
Strength--
But Together
Is the key,
I think,
The hug
That helps,
The knowing
That I am
Crying too,
That we
Are grieving
The might-have-been
Together
We will walk forward…
Farmer Guys
You sunburned,
Dirty, smelly,
muddy boys
You grease-stained,
Shit-stained,
Weary-eyed
Farmer boys
You smarty-
Pants,
Laughing,
Silo-climbing,
daring boys
You working-
Til-you-drop,
Til the cows
Come home
And then
Some,
Boys
You John-Deere-
Driving,
Calf-hutch
Cleaning,
Bill-paying,
Heifer-chasing,
Fence-fixing,
Teasing boys
You milking
Men,
Fix-it men,
Fix-her men,
Feed-the-calves
Men
You farmer boys,
You farmer men,
You’re something
Else;
I love you
Farmer guys.
Dandelion Grandchildren
I saw someone using an implement of horticultural torture to gouge out a dandelion from her otherwise pristine lawn the other day, and I winced. Not that I haven’t ripped out weeds from my own lawn and garden: one person’s ugly invader is another’s herbal remedy, but I have always admired these little spots of sunshine amidst spring’s green, green grass. When it comes to the dandelion, I say, “Let it be.”
I didn’t know until recently that dandelions are also the symbols for military children, who are encouraged to bloom where they land, to stay strong, to flourish in sometimes tough conditions. When I discovered this piece of information, I realized in the next instant that all of my five grandchildren are dandelion children-all five have had a parent serving in the military for their entire lives.
At eight years old, our oldest granddaughter has lived in seven different homes in five different states. Her helicopter-pilot father has been deployed to faraway places for two of the eight years she has been on this earth. She and her two younger sisters have had to adapt to new schools, to say good-bye to old friends, and to find new friends. They have also been fortunate to experience new adventures such as reaching Pike’s Peak at a very young age and scampering about Lincoln’s Kentucky birthplace. From Pennsylvania to Kentucky and with lots of places in between, the three little sisters have learned to be strong and flourish.
Our son, who left full-time Army duty last year to come back to the farm, is currently away on a month-long training mission with the National Guard. Our youngest grandchild, an energetic nineteen-month-old, is probably wondering where the big, tall person is who used to carry him, feed him, and cuddle him when he cried. He’s too young to even give voice to his angst. When I asked his three-year-old sister where her Daddy was, she said, “He’s in heaven.” After a shocked second, I responded, “Nope, try again.” “He’s in the Army,” she corrected herself. Right-o, little one, and I know that you don’t even really understand what you are saying. He’s just far, far away, and none of us knows exactly where at the moment, but I can assure you that when he does return home, he will probably feel like he is in heaven.
As I have watched the dandy-lionesses, my daughter and my daughter-in-law, deal with being single parents at times as their husbands have done their military jobs, I have felt incredibly proud of them, as well as sad for them and worried for them as they have coped with holding down the fort, forging onward, doing absolutely everything to ensure that their little dandelions thrive.
Growing up during the Vietnam era, I had little connection to the military life and what it entailed. We were civilians, and war was bad. I never imagined that I would have offspring who would serve in the military. It is still somewhat of a shock to me that I have become a military mom/mother-in-law. You never know, do you?
But there is always something to learn in life, and I have a much better understanding and a deeper appreciation for our military families now, no doubt born of familiarity more than anything. I am beyond proud of my farmer children (and that’s another story that I will share someday), and I am equally tremendously proud of all of my young military relatives.
Life is not always easy, that’s for darn sure: I think that military children understand that as well as anyone does.
And as for dandelions, they have a special place in my heart.
This one is for Hadley, Lily, Finley, Mila, and Tate, with love from Nana/Jenjen
And thank you for reading this.
Dandelion Parachutes 