[Note: The following poem was written days ago and was prescheduled. This note was written on 10/1/2020. Marla, my wife was taken to the emergency room today regarding sudden serious problems with her liver. She has Wilson’s Disease. I will be absent from blogging and will not be able to respond to comments. Take care and stay safe. ]
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staring at the soft moon one night
the next hard morning was driving home
past lawyers past schoolgirls
past praying bugs and all alone
like wind-up toys they judge and vote
and next some raking leaves work fast
then eating sleeping peeing dressing
wondering how long life will last
to wake up dead or alive or between
an eternal fleeting poem continues on
scanning eyes from word to word
your story starts with Once upon
to kiss or hate or just sit still
to get to want to follow
while compassion sings the best of all
Beyond self-deception hard to swal
low
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Note: This is a Praying Mantis. She is a female, laden with eggs. Because of the rotten, declining environment, there are fewer Praying Mantises in our area every year. Years ago, we used to see Mantises frequently; now we rarely see any. I found this one in a hospital garden, along a river, that used to have a lot of them. This was the only one that i saw. Fortunately, female Mantises do not need males in order to reproduce; they can produce fertile eggs and young that are exact clones of themselves. (It sure seems like my childhood premonitions about man ruining the environment are, many decades later, turning out to be true.)
Tom's Nature-up-close Photography and Mindfulness Blog 
Our prayers are with you.
Thinking of you and your wife. M 🙂
Oh Tom, I am so sorry – may your dear wife be in recovery soon.
As for the praying mantis – I haven’t seen one in at least ten years – they used to be everywhere –
Praying Marla gets better..
Best wishes to you and your wife as you both journey with self-care 🙏
Best wishes to you and Marla. I wish her a speedy recovery.
Thinking of you and Marla.
A speedy recovery please.
Hoping for a quick recovery for Marla and yourself.
Best wishes to both you and your wife during this tough time! Thoughts and prayers are with you.
Our prayers are with both of you. Stay safe Tom.
Many hopes that your wife will recover quickly, Tom.
We wish her well and my thoughts are with you both.
That is one of the best pieces you’ve written, Tom. Sorry to hear of Marla’s health concerns. Hope she recovers soon.
Praying for Marla and you.
May all be well for your wife — and for you, Tom.
A “like” for your close-up of the praying mantis, something I’ve never seen, and for your stirring words … I’ll keep you both in my thoughts and prayers Tom.
All the best and speedy recovery to Marla! Take care Tom!
Having in mind the fact, that Soft Moon started as a one man project, does the presence of other musicians distort your initial vision or do they contribute to it organically?