a conference of crows
downtown LA looms above clouds
mountains in the mist
Rainy Morning Walking
nature
I Live in Beauty on the Rim
A number of years ago I lived on a canyon rim in the Panhandle of Texas, a side canyon to Palo Duro Canyon, the second largest canyon in the country. I wrote this poem when I lived there.
The canyon edge looms out my bedroom windows,
pale adobe, stark.
Fall to death or serious injury.
I will not fall; I love living on the edge.
Rain brings a one hundred foot deluge,
roar of water, red adobe, cascading, screaming.
Someone said my house is pink; it is not pink.
Color of canyon, worldwide color,
Moroccan, Pueblo, Saudi, Mali, Navaho, Timbuktu,
desert alive and lovely.
Everywhere.
Three bucks watch me through my bedroom windows.
They see me move; they stare.
Isabella stands, rigid, watching…what?
I kneel to her level, follow her eyes.
Bobcat casually climbs the canyon wall, impervious.
He marks the juniper tree, walks a deer path,
disappears, secretive, rarely seen.
The huge hoot owl’s voice echoes down the canyon,
drifting into my dreams.
A young roadrunner calls, scratchy voice,
running across the patio–on the edge.
In spring the mocking bird sings all night,
“This is my territory.”
I sing all year, full of joy!
Book 30 for 2026: “A Rift in Time”, Raja Shehadeh
Written in 2010 this nonfiction work follows the author on a journey as he attempts to reenact the journey his great-great uncle made to escape the police of the Ottoman Empire as it was disintegrating in the early 1900s. Unlike now when the countries of Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan, Israel have borders and you have to have permission to cross, then they were all part of the Ottoman Empire with no borders. The only countries at the time that were not part of the Ottoman Empire were Iran and a lot of the peninsula of what is now Saudi Arabia. The fact that all these new countries have borders made it difficult for the author to exactly follow his ancestor’s travels.
The author, a Palestinian Christian who is also a leading Palestinian lawyer, lived in the West Bank when he wrote this memoir. The uncle was a journalist in the late 1800s and died just before the existence of Israel occurred. As Shehadeh travels, he notes how the landscape has changed. Israeli authorities have destroyed most of the old Palestinian villages. Where their small farms, olive groves, etc. existed, the Israelis have created large, mechanized farms. He notes that these farms use a lot of irrigation and have caused the water table to go down and made changes to the Jordan River and Dead Sea.
While visiting the old places and people he can find that might know of his relative, he also discusses Palestinian history and the history of the creation of Israel. Britain wanted the help of Zionist Jews to help defeat the Ottoman Turks who had allied themselves with the Germans in WWI. To get their help they created the Balfour Declaration in 1917 which promised the Zionists that they would help them create a homeland of their own in what was then Palestine. After the fall of the Ottoman Empire, what was Palestine and now Israel was ruled for decades by the British–the British Mandate (1920-1948). The author’s uncle predicted much of what occurred and actually wanted the Ottomans to continues ruling but differently, giving each group of people more self-governing power. Instead we now have countries many of whose borders were created by the British and French.
Recent Adventures in Santa Barbara County
After dropping my grandson off at his apartment in Goleta, I went in search of a trail about which I had read. Well, GPS did not take me there but to another trail. Here is where I began.
It’s summer and the wetlands are not very wet but this goes between two wetlands. This whole area is apparently for wetland preservation. Lower after looping around, I came to a woods.
I tried to figure out a way to take a photo that would encompass the entirety of these large, tall trees but gave up.
The trail sort of loops back and near here I saw a picnic table covered in graffiti. And then after walking to the other side of the wooded area, I saw this old barn.
Once upon a time, it appears to have been quite fancy.
I walked back to my car and drove to Carpenteria, a smaller beach town south of Santa Barbara toward Ventura. Carpenteria is not fancy like some other beach towns. It is friendly, laid back. I was hungry so went to the Dart Coffee place which was closed the last time I stopped there.
The empanada was yummy and served with their own chimichurri. This is a Frida book I have never seen before; it was on a shelf with other books for anyone to read.
This coffee shop sells cards with paintings similar to this one on the wall in a hallway that goes to other shops.
After wandering around this area and trying to find a shop where I previously bought a sweater (the shop was gone), I walked toward the beach.
In the distance beyond the ocean you can see the Channel Islands.
And turning around and facing the other direction, I saw this.
California Adventure 2
Although my son had been here a couple of times previously, he had never been up Mt. Baldy so we decided to drive a way I had never gone before, the Glendora Mountain Highway. It begins in the mountains above the town of Glendora, CA, and goes approximately 22 miles east where it intersects the highway going up Mt. Baldy at the Mt. Baldy Village. This road is not for the faint of heart. Although in good condition and well paved and two lanes wide, it is narrow and windy and without guard rails. Unfortunately, we did not stop and I was so busy driving, I could not see all the views. Unlike most of the highways and roads up toward the mountains all of which have views to the south, this highway crosses over to the other side so that many of views reveal all the rugged mountains to the north. I will attempt this adventure again, but not alone. For most of the trip we saw no other cars, and there is no cell phone reception up this way so best to have someone along with you if you decide to drive this.
After we intersected the main road, we drove to the top but the very top is blocked off so we turned around and parked to hike to Angel Falls. The following photos were taken on this hike. Most of it is paved, but the very last part up to the falls is steep and gravel and necessitates crossing the stream below the falls. We decided to hike farther up a gravel road that climbs up the mountain where the paved part stops. Angel Falls can be heard long before you can see it. This is a relatively easy hike. Even on a Monday, there were quite a few people headed to the Falls so if you do not want crowds, go on a weekday.
Yes, that is snow on the left side.
California Adventure 1
My son was visiting from Ohio and we decided to go on an adventure. Highway 39 used to go up through the mountains north of Azusa and connect with Highway 2. However, due to rockslides the last 4 or so miles, those 4 miles of the highway have been closed for years. We decided to drive as far as we could. You can go around the barrier and continue by hiking farther up over a sort of pass. Although my son did go partway, we did not hike to the top. These are photos along the way where you pass two reservoirs that are now used only for flood control. It is not a difficult drive and a fun activity going up into Los Angeles National Forest–an easy day adventure.
Delights – 5
reading,
listening to birds
the gurgling of water,
looking up to watch
four hummingbirds challenge
each other at the feeder, and
I notice I’m surrounded by flowers
and the scent of orange blossoms.
Delights–Three
There is nothing like meeting a goal while enjoying it to bring a sense of delight as well as accomplishment. I walk daily–today I arrived at day 707 without ever missing a day–looking at the flowers, visiting with all the other walkers. I live in a walking neighborhood with friendly walkers who at a minimum wave. Some stop to chat and some check on me if they have not seen me out walking in a while because of the different routes we take or different times we walk. One particular person who checks on me taught me how to make some of her native food–India. Another lady several blocks away prefers to walk with others, not alone, so if she sees me out, we join together in the company of her little dog, June, whom I have never seen actually walking. June rides in a baby carriage.
Now, as I write this, I’m enjoying another late afternoon of delight in my backyard. The hibiscus is full of ruby flowers. Freeway daisies, bright white and purple, pop up everywhere. Four different colors of bougainvillea sport their joy. One nasturtium–they are popping in places I never even planted–is sporting the same color of ruby as the hibiscus. The lemon tree is full of almost ripe lemons some of which I have promised to friends and neighbors. One woman cannot eat all these lemons. Meanwhile, I listen to different birds singing their varied songs and to the gurgle of the water fountain by the Nile Blue French doors and watch the hummingbird who is watching me.
I feel grateful to be surrounded in beauty and quiet joy.
Santa Barbara Botanical Garden
gurgling water
redwoods sighing
peace
Note: All the plants in this 78 acre garden are native to the area including the coastal redwoods.
Spring at The Huntington
Breezes caress
Scents of jasmine, roses
Rainbow colors
These are growing on a large rock.
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