When Music Finds Me

May 5, 2026May 5, 2026 / still a dreamer / 13 Comments

I never really know how music finds me when it does. It just does, and I’m always grateful. The song and video below are what inspired me to write this poem.

I’m pretty sure I saw Gladiator a long time ago, but I don’t recall the storyline. It doesn’t matter. It is this music and these visuals that called me to write these words.

The song, played by 2CELLOS and the London Symphony Orchestra, is Now We Are Free, from Gladiator, written by Hans Zimmer.

This was my inspiration:

Colosseum photo by Chris Flxxx / pexels

Poetry – Day 30

April 30, 2026 / still a dreamer / 2 Comments

Today is the last day of National Poetry Month. We leave quietly with a poem by Mary Oliver.

Photo: Leeloo The First/Pexels

Today

Today I’m flying low and I’m
not saying a word
I’m letting all the voodoos of ambition sleep.

The world goes on as it must,
the bees in the garden rumbling a little,
the fish leaping, the gnats getting eaten.
And so forth.

But I’m taking the day off.
Quiet as a feather.
I hardly move though really I’m traveling
a terrific distance.

Stillness. One of the doors
into the temple.

Mary Oliver, 2012

Poetry – Day 22

April 22, 2026April 30, 2026 / still a dreamer / 5 Comments

National Poetry Month continues, and this poem honors Rainer Maria Rilke.

Photo: Vincent Delsuc/Pexels

INITIATION

Whoever you are, go out into the evening,
leaving your room, of which you know each bit;
your house is the last before the infinite,
whoever you are.
Then with your eyes that wearily
scarce lift themselves from the worn-out door-stone
slowly you raise a shadowy black tree
and fix it on the sky: slender, alone.
And you have made the world (and it shall grow
and ripen as a word, unspoken, still).
When you have grasped its meaning with your will,
then tenderly your eyes will let it go …

~ Rainer Maria Rilke, 1906

Searching for Books

April 17, 2026 / still a dreamer / 5 Comments

Are you a reader? Me, too. Sometimes it’s challenging to find the time to read, or sometimes to find the right book for the space we’re in. That can be a tough one.

But then, during all the deliberation of what I want to read at the moment, comes my county’s huge annual book sale. Last year, they had 60,000 books available, in every genre you can imagine.

The only way to do this is to come with a list and try to stick to it, because inevitably there will also be a book by an author you love that you hadn’t thought of; a copy in brand new condition to replace your old, beat-up paperback; or maybe you’ll just want to take a peek at the art section. Or maybe at the cookbooks. Wait – now they have jigsaw puzzles? (Yes, they do.)

The Hunterdon County Library Annual Book Sale is a dangerous place to go. Especially when you can come out with 15 books for $30 or $15, depending if you go Saturday or Sunday.

Last year’s very small haul ($4.50) – I went with a really tight rein on myself, as I’ve been trying to push books out of the house, not bring more in! Two of these were replacement copies – one for one of my top seven favorite books (The Art of Racing in the Rain). I read the rest, and am in the ongoing process with two, which are non-fiction.

What else is nice? Being in such wonderful company, where every person you meet is an avid reader, and where, depending which section you’re in, you can get solid recommendations and insights.

Making my list now ….