©2021 Susan Noyes Anderson

My years of life have made me tough.
But lately, it’s been kinda rough.
I’ve rocked the highways, low ways, byways.
Nowadays, things seem sorta sideways.

©2021 Susan Noyes Anderson

image by Sharon McCutcheon on Unsplash

I’ve always been an early riser,
but I still enjoyed my bed.
Now I leap out like a rabbit,
scared a fox might have my head.

©2021 Susan Noyes Anderson

image by Zeynap Emecikli on Unsplash

I wasn’t blind to them;
I saw your flaws.
But greatness was the thing that held my eye.

©2021 Susan Noyes Anderson

image by Johann Siemens on Unsplash

You said I was your giving tree,
my foliage tendered to your need:
the branches and the greenery,
the trunk sliced deep enough to bleed.

©2021 Susan Noyes Anderson

My do-it-yourselfish man
sealed up the tile, after
installers grouted pits.

©2021 Susan Noyes Anderson

The little book you gave to me
about a lovely giving tree
has rooted on the polished wood
that holds the tomes my heart deems good.

©2020 Susan Noyes Anderson

image by Andrew Ruiz on Unsplash

The flag is meant to symbolize
a birthright we all share.
Our nation offers citizens
a life beyond compare.

©2020 Susan Noyes Anderson

image by Nick Fewings on Unsplash

This brand-new poem I will define
as post-election valentine.
We’ve all fought hard; we’ve all fought long,
but now it’s time to sing the song
of healing and of dignity,
of knowing who we need to be.
For we are needed, one and all,
to save each other from the fall
that must accompany a nation
focused on recrimination.
If you’ve won, show grace and gladness.
If you’ve lost, then feel the sadness,
hope your worst fears are for naught,
and try hard not to stir the pot.