| Filed under Guide dogs Poem writing
🌲 🎄
2022 greetings and blessings to all of you from our family.
Irish Christmas blessing
The light of the Christmas star to you
The warmth of a home and hearth to you
The cheer and good will of friends to you
The hope of a childlike heart to you
The joy of a thousand angels to you
The love of the Son and
God’s peace to you
Photo description: Annie and Jerry stand together wearing festive burgundy shirts. Yellow lab Bailey sits in front of Annie wearing a leather guide dog harness and leash.
| Filed under blindness Fiction nonfiction Poem writing
Yes, folks, I spent time with Karina Kantas, the host of the author’s assist podcast and the Artist First Radio Network , talking all things creativity and writing. Karina lives in the Greek Isles and it was a great show. To visit with us and enjoy the conversation, click here.
Not sure where Dreya and I will fly to next but it’s sure to be interesting. I’ve got our virtual bags packed and ready to go.
Ann’s personal logo
| Filed under nonfiction Poem writing
This poem was written for a weekly writing prompt generated by https://writingworkswonders.com/Writing Works Wonders. It’s fun and keeps the creative muscle in top shape.
In the Sun
By Ann Chiappetta
Bandana the cat dozes
A ginger tabby
lazes in the pumpkin patch
Hooded candy corn yellow eyes
the sphinx
basking in the warm praise of Ra.
2021
| Filed under Poem
Sunday’s Kitten
By Ann Chiappetta
Not yet
A prim princess
rescued from Kittenish
misadventures, undaunted
black fur
feather
duster tail, lithe
ferrets in and out of
indoor playground until she finds
the sun.
2021
black kitten Luna with new pink and white collar sitting on her cat tree. The charm hangs from the collar and is a crescent moon with a cat on it.
| Filed under nonfiction Poem
Blogging about our animals is a bright glow in our lives. Just when I think it can’t get any zanier around here, cohabitating with two large dogs, three cats and two guinea pigs, something happens. Thank goodness it’s usually adorable or funny.
Meet Luna, a petite long-haired mix. April rescued her when she was 6 weeks old and she didn’t weigh more than a bottle of water. She is about five pounds now and won’t be a large cat. She is gentle and happy and like Bagheera/Noodle kitty, travels well in her carrier and has made her place in the pack. In this photo she found a warm spot to take a nap, I suppose a laptop is kind of like a human lap just a bit flat.
Below is my tribute to Luna.
Kitten haiku
Sprawling Feline warm
from hardware and data chips
cat divinity
Photo: Black kitten laying on it’s side over open laptop computer, head and paws facing camera.
A Blessing
By James Wright
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/46481/a-blessing#mainContent
Just off the highway to Rochester, Minnesota,
Twilight bounds softly forth on the grass.
And the eyes of those two Indian ponies
Darken with kindness.
They have come gladly out of the willows
To welcome my friend and me.
We step over the barbed wire into the pasture
Where they have been grazing all day, alone.
They ripple tensely, they can hardly contain their happiness
That we have come.
They bow shyly as wet swans. They love each other.
There is no loneliness like theirs.
At home once more, they begin munching the young tufts of spring in the darkness.
I would like to hold the slenderer one in my arms,
For she has walked over to me
And nuzzled my left hand.
She is black and white,
Her mane falls wild on her forehead,
And the light breeze moves me to caress her long ear
That is delicate as the skin over a girl’s wrist.
Suddenly I realize
That if I stepped out of my body I would break
Into blossom.
| Filed under nonfiction Poem writing
A few months ago a writing friend suggested a contest being offered by the Handy Uncapped Pen. I hadn’t submitted my work for a while and hoped this would help get me back into the submission state-of-mind again. It did help. I won second place for my poem, “Tide”.
Here’s the link:
http://www.handyuncappedpen.com/2021/06/cripendy-contest-second-place-tide-by.html
Thanks to Cheryll Romanek for the beautiful beach pic.
| Filed under Poem
Memorial Day
The last Monday of May commemorates Memorial Day, the time to gather ourselves and remember the sacrifices made by our Nation’s soldiers who died protecting our country. It has always been a reflective and poignant holiday for me; my father served in Korea, my uncles and cousins in World War II, Vietnam, and my husband in the assorted international conflicts in the Middle East during the 1980s and1990s. During my time as a trauma therapist working with veterans, I heard the firsthand accounts of the demands and sacrifices our men and women in the armed forces made and continue to make for us each and every day.
Originally called Decoration Day, the actual day set aside to fly flags at half-mast, participate in parades, and enjoy the launch of the summer season was May 30th.
It was referred to as Decoration Day because it was chosen as the best time by many families to brush off the ides of winter and decorate the soldiers’ graves. Memorial Day was officially declared a National Holiday by President Lynden Johnson on May 1966 at Arlington National Cemetery.
A memorial written by Civil War-era orator, Robert Green Ingersoll, eloquently captures the significance of Memorial Day for all generations of our Fallen:
“They died for liberty—they died for us. They are at rest.
They sleep in the land they made free, under the flag they rendered stainless … Earth may run red with other wars, but they are at peace.
In the midst of battles, in the roar of conflict, they found the serenity of death.”
Below is a link with additional information about the history behind Memorial Day. http://www.usmemorialday.org/backgrnd.html
| Filed under blindness Guide dogs Poem writing
Hello all-
It’s always a pleasure to put my writing and performing skills to good use, like when helping out Guiding Eyes for the Blind www.guidingeyes.org . Here’s something I wrote to help them out.
Hi my name is Ann Chiappetta and I am a Guiding Eyes graduate.
I’d like to share what Guiding Eyes means to me
In the form of an acrostic poem.
Guide dog mobility instructors who are the best in the business
Unparalleled and internationally recognized brood and stud program
Increased independence
Doggone bestest puppy program
Excellent follow up services for graduates and their dogs
Developing programs for athletes
, active older adults, and people with additional disabilities
Organization who believes in the potential of it’s clients
Graduates like me who
are recipients of
confident, capable and loving canine partners.
Thanks for listening.
Click here for the audio:
| Filed under nonfiction Poem writing
Hi all-
Podcaster Lisa Tomey reviewed my prose and poetry collection, Words Of Life. Here’s the link:
Don’t forget to listen to her other podcasts episodes featuring other poets and authors.
