What I choose

Do I value
the popular and conventional

or the uniquely beautiful?

Do I follow social customs

or true principles?

Am I content to stay as I am

or do I have a drive to reach higher?

Do I believe that "it can't be done"

or that "the impossible only 

takes a little longer"?

Who I Am

 by Cheryl Merrick

Am I a wife who spends 

her time and energies

endlessly waiting on "her man"?

No, but I do endlessly give

support and encouragement.

Am I a mom who hovers 

over my children 

always "caring" for them? 

Not really, but I am always there

to cheer them on as they

learn to solve their problems.

Winter Night

by Cheryl Merrick

Moon- full disk of glowing light
high in the winter sky

Trees- dark silhouettes
trailing shadows behind them

Stars- distant points of light
punctuating the velvet expanse

As winter's intense stillness

enfolds the night in beauty

Thoughts on a full moon in December

Christmas 2020

by Cheryl Merrick

This year Christmas

is different.

The normal holiday bustle

has slowed to more of an amble.

The social frenzy has fizzled,

and our myopic focus on 

finding "the perfect gift"

has enlarged, 

as realizing how important

our families are to us,

we are filled with a longing 

to just be with them.

Facing a pandemic, death of loved ones,

unemployment, and civil unrest

has made us more

aware of our vulnerabilities

and grateful that 

our Savior came to earth 

to show us how to live

and to give us hope.

Not Alone

 by Cheryl Merrick

Silence hangs over my home

like a crushing weight

pressing in upon me.

Fighting the quiet,

I try to fill it with my words

as I remember all our

pleasant conversations,

but my speech only echos 

off the hard stillness. 

Time to Say Goodbye

 by Cheryl Merrick

It is time for us to say goodbye

to a humble, loving man.

Desiring to be with your family,

you have bravely suffered

pain, treatments, and therapy.

The last 20 years have passed too quickly,

as you have fought to remain here

continually giving us your love and support.

Succumbing to the Expected

by Cheryl Merrick

Accepting both my doom and my duty,

I plodded through my day

doing what is expected of me.

Diligently trying to meet

others mundane needs and wants,

I unwisely accepted the judgement 

that while their gifts are useful

mine are merely frivolous.

This is how, conceding to the expected,

my sparkling creative light

was carefully hidden and nearly forgotten

under a smothering, dark basket.

I wrote this in December of 2019, but never posted it. Since then, I have continued to largely suppress my creative talents allowing endless details to consume my time and energies, so I posted this now to remind me to change my ways. 

A Frog's Advice on the Danger of the Slow Boil

by Cheryl Merrick

At first the cool water feels invigorating.
I swim and splash thoroughly enjoying it.
I enjoy the sense of freedom
to be able to do things 
that I've wanted to for so long.

Though it's a little warmer now,
I feel even better.
With my muscles relaxed, 

I get so much done!

Life is great!

Time to Be Myself

by Cheryl Merrick

Over and over again,
I push myself
to meet the needs
of those around me.

Each day, the struggle
to be what I'm not
weighs on me,
til tired and grouchy,
I finally collapse 
into an exhausted heap.

The love and support
I've bestowed on family and friends
becomes just a memory
as I withdraw into myself to recharge
before my light extinguishes,

and it is only after days of healing,

that I am able to reach out again.

Reformation

by Cheryl Merrick

I. Accepting reality
Doomed to endlessly repeat my actions, 
like in the movie, Groundhog Day, 
until I "get it right,"
I reluctantly acknowledge that 
I must accept reality.

What must I accept?