Arboreal ... Delightful

Today’s word is “arboreal”... of or relating to trees; treelike. (Dictionary.com)

Delightful

Look! The leaves are here!

The arboreal world wakes!

Joy in leafy greens.

Anne Selleck

Copyright 2021

Refractory ... Slobber

Today’s word is “refractory” ... hard or impossible to manage; stubbornly disobedient. (Dictionary.com)

Slobber

A Bassett they said,

Refractory but so cute,

You will fall in love.

Anne Selleck

Copyright 2021

Mammock... Lost

Today’s word is “mammock” ... to break, tear, or cut into fragments; shred. (Dictionary.com)

Lost

It’s sad to see something whole

     and holy ...

Something vibrant, living,

     full of hope

          Mammocked.

It can happen to a person, or

     a place, or an idea.

It can happen in a blink.

     Or it can happen so slowly

          that you hardly notice.

Just a small shift here or there,

     a slight turn. You look around,

          but you don’t know where you are anymore.

Anne Selleck

Copyright 2021

Exonumia ... Beyond

Today’s word is “exonumia” ... items, as tokens or medals, that resemble money but are not intended to circulate as money. (Dictionary.com)

Beyond

Earthly treasures rust.

Exonumia and such.

But there is much more.

Anne Selleck

Copyright 2021

Sumpsimus ... Theories

Today’s word is “sumpsimus” ... adherence to or persistence in using a strictly correct term, holding to a precise practice, etc., as a rejection of an erroneous but more common form. (Dictionary)

Theories

It is strange that long ago,

Certain ideas were the same,

As arguments we’ve had of late,

Which some would sure define as lame.

Whether a plain word or phrase,

Was the correct theology,

Mumpsimus or sumpsimus,

Which one would it turn out to be?

Some would rather modify,

Truth to fit their own design,

And then would sleep in complete peace,

Thinking everything was fine.

But truth is not so comfortable,

As they would have you to believe,

And merely changing words will not,

Bend the course of reality.

Though this may not seem important,

Belief has consequences sure,

Actions follow, like night from day,

And this will be our doom or cure.

Anne Selleck

Copyright 2021

Celluloid ... Airy

Today’s word is “celluloid” ... of or involving motion pictures. (Dictionary.com)

Airy

Many stars exist, you know,

On celluloid or in the skies,

Some sparkle most delightfully,

A very few are truly wise.

The earthly stars are paid to shine,

And follow their directions,

For this they strut the carpet red,

And are adored with great affection.

The stars above glow on their own,

As their Master has ordained,

Adoring masses watch with awe,

This beauty unrestrained.

Anne Selleck

Copyright 2021

Bibliopole ... Tomes

Today’s word is “bibliopole” ... a bookseller, especially a dealer in rare or used books. (Dictionary.com)

Tomes

Where are all the beautiful words,

Bound in elegant leather,

Ancient secrets, stories and rhymes,

Collections saved all together?

A bibliopole’s work is never quite done

There are always more volumes to find,

People are hungry for unusual pages,

To satisfy egos and minds.

Somewhere in a safe is the item they seek,

Or maybe a box faraway,

The rarest of rare books; a treasure,

For which they search night and day.

Anne Selleck

Copyright 2021

Versal ... Push

Today’s word is “versal” ... universal or whole. (Dictionary.com)

Push

On the versal Earth,

Beauty blooms through mud and stone.

Insupressible.

Anne Selleck

Copyright 2021

Sustainability ... Plenty

Happy Earth Day! Today’s word is “sustainability” ... the quality of not being harmful to the environment or depleting natural resources, and thereby supporting long-term ecological balance.  (Dictionary.com)

Plenty

Our only home, Earth.

But sustainability?

She gives us her gifts.

Anne Selleck

Copyright 2021

Parnassian ... Rhyme

Today’s word is “Parnassian” ... pertaining to poetry. (Dictionary.com)

Rhyme

Few poems are Parnassian,

Filled with lovely phrases,

Encouraging sweet visions,

And many lavish praises.

But many are redemptive,

Cheerful or inspiring,

Fun or quite reflective,

Great for those inquiring.

Though not as fun for some,

As plays or books or games,

Still they will be written,

And by some acclaimed.

Anne Selleck

Copyright 2021

Alfresco ... Lunch

Today’s word is “alfresco” ... out-of-doors; in the open air. (Dictionary.com)

Lunch

Oh, to eat alfresco,

Out with flowers and trees,

Breathing in the pollen,

Fighting off the bees.

Watching squirrels run and play,

Squinting in the sun,

Hoping cold food stays that way,

Pretending that it’s fun.

Can’t wait for nice warm weather,

And the pleasures that it brings,

Even with the irritations,

We’ll have more fun in spring!

Anne Selleck

Copyright 2021

Brummagem ... More

Today’s word is “brummagem” ... showy but inferior and worthless. (Dictionary.com)

More

All ephemera and brummagem

Sparkles and entices,

Who can resist the bright, rich call,

That entangles so precisely?

Like Midas and his golden touch,

Would not all be better,

If all want could be erased,

And we were then unfettered?

But once you have the houses,

Cars and piles of money,

Closets full of clothes and jewels,

Would all be milk and honey?

Or would there yet be questions,

Of what meaning there could be,

Beyond the shiny surfaces,

That spread sea to shinning sea?

All that glitters is not gold,

All treasure turns to rust,

Love and things we cannot hold,

Are the things that we can trust.

Anne Selleck

Copyright 2021

Longanimity ... Finite

Today’s word is “longanimity” ...  patient endurance of hardship, injuries, or offense; forbearance. (Dictionary.com)

Finite

Longanimity has flown,

     chased away by grievance.

Complaining, and demanding

     have taken center stage.

They strut and flaunt unhappiness 

     for anyone who will listen.

And if no one will listen,

     anything else will do.

Take to the streets. Demand compliance.

     All that anguish turned to anger

          flying in all directions.

A little love would go a long way,

     a little kindness. A bit of compassion.

A little true understanding,

     untainted by jealousy and greed.

Have we fallen so far?

     This gravity will take us down,

          further and further from

                 goodness.

We must come back. We must 

     learn to fly.

Anne Selleck

Copyright 2021

Specious ... Tip

Today’s word is “specious” ...  apparently good or right though lacking real merit; superficially pleasing or plausible. (Dictionary.com)

Tip

You weigh them in a scale,

       balanced somewhere in your brain,

Arguments for this and that,

     sometimes tipping up

           sometimes down.

Facts that are specious.

Facts that seem plausible.

And emotions that don’t seem

     to help at all.

Everything you read, or hear, or watch

     falls into one side or the other.

Except those pesky items that don’t

     fit ...

Those get tossed aside to be

     dealt with later ...

But they niggle and nudge,

     annoyingly. Trying to get your

           attention. Waiting to be

                  heard.

Wanting to be the last word. 

     The final word. The word that

          gives you peace.

Anne Selleck

Copyright 2021

Pandiculation ... Breakthrough

Today’s word is “pandiculation” ... the act of stretching oneself, especially on waking. (Dictionary.com)

Breakthrough

Breathe in morning air,

Open with pandiculation,

Choose how to begin.

Anne Selleck

Copyright 2021

Hydra ... Quantify

Today’s word is “hydra” ... a persistent or many-sided problem that presents new obstacles as soon as one aspect is solved. (Dictionary.com)

Quantify

Ok. It’s true.

     This life is a hydra,

           heads flying in all directions.

You just get a handle on one thing

     And whoosh ... in comes something

          new to distract you.

All sorts of entertainment, politics,

     employment concerns, sickness,

          social shifts happening so fast that

               your head spins as well.

And of course, if you care to think

     about it, the meaning of your life ...

And to find peace, or distraction,

     we watch t.v., eat and drink, shop,

          read, do yoga, run, sleep.

Anything to keep the specter of purpose

     at bay.

And yet we are magnificently made,

     and our world, perfect for our kind.

Strange, we fit here so well

     yet long for a place to call home.

Anne Selleck

Copyright 2021

Foofaraw ...

Today’s word is “foofaraw” ... a great fuss or disturbance about something very insignificant. (Dictionary.com)

Trust

Foofaraws and molehills,

We celebrate and build,

From tiny slights and hurts,

We get what we have willed.

Wounded, angry people,

Believing they’ve been had,

Encouraged in their false beliefs,

To label others bad.

The load they carry is immense,

And cannot be relieved,

Though their enemies may fall,

They will remain deceived.

Each of us is given gifts,

That we all should treasure,

If we do not work as one,

We’ll have sorrow without measure.

Anne Selleck

Copyright 2021

Lucinda ... Still

Today’s word is “lucida” ... the brightest star in a constellation. (Dictionary.com)

Still

Looking for the North Star,

   the guiding star, the lucida,

The light that shines so brightly

     it makes the way obvious.

The dark is so dark.

     You can’t see your hand 

           in front of your face.

                   Or one foot in front 

                          of the other.

So we step out in faith.

Anne Selleck

Copyright 2021