SUMMER SOLSTICE

 

On the first day of summer,

the sun floated like a balloon

above the Bald Mountain

and ricocheted through the forest.

The Tiger lilies lifted cups

to drink the morning light,

a chorus of birds performed

outside my bedroom window.

Warmth wrapped my body

like a blanket as the raindrops

vanished with a wave

of the summer solstice.

The promise of long days

filled my heart with delight

as the sun nourished the crops

and night gave way to light.

                  --Brenda Kay Ledford

Happy Summer to all my blogger friends!

Father's Day

My brother, Harold Ledford, holding his baby granddaughter, Lucy Claire.  Harold was a wonderful father and loving grandfather.  He was softhearted as chocolate melting on a hot sidewalk toward children and animals.  Harold was a perfect example of fatherhood!

My father passed away on Thanksgiving Day in 1988.  My brother, Harold, also passed away two days before Thanksgiving two years ago.  Both of these men were wonderful fathers and loving grandfathers.  I'm so grateful that I had these two kind, gentlemen in my life.  

Fathers are very important.  President Barack Obama said, "Any man can father a child, but not all men are fathers."

The loving presence of fathers in the family is critical in the development of children.  Statistics state that many youth get into crime because they didn't have fathers as role models.  It's also important for little girls to have fathers who are kind to them.  It gives daughters confidence and to one day choose a husband who will love and be kind to the them.

As you can see in this photo, my brother, Harold, adored his little granddaughter, little Lucy Claire.  What a blessing to have such a warm, loving relationship.

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there.

Brenda Kay Ledford Gives Program for Towns County Historical Society

 Brenda Kay Ledford will also be the featured reader at "Coffee With the Poets," on Wednesday, June 14th, 2023 at the Moss Memorial Library; Hayesville, NC at 10:30 AM.

She will read poetry from her new book, Leatherwood Falls, Blue Ridge Mountain Poems, that was released by Kelsay Books this year.

The public is invited to both of these free events.  An open mic will follow Ledford's reading at "Coffee With the Poets."  This event is sponsored by North Carolina Writer's Network-West.  

My Backyard Zoo

 My Backyard Zoo

The neighbor's lawn mower

mocks my yard popping

up with dandelions.

A bunny rabbit hops

and flips over

the clover-bud mat.

She's an acrobat

performing in time

to a mockingbird rapping.

Gracie, the groundhog,

stretches on her back paws,

then dips and  nips

the heads off buttercups.

No need to trim

this wayward wilderness,

the wildlife knows

a better way

to bright my day!

           

I hope my blogger friends are having a happy day filled with sunshine and beautiful flowers.

Love,

Brenda 

Memorial Day

 

Knockout Roses

On Memorial Day,

dozens of Knockout Roses

explode beside the Burger King.

Customers race past

the fabulous flowers,

too busy to notice

this magnificent garden show.

Roses glow like rubies

in the morning light.

What a sight

for those who will savor

the table that nature spreads.

             --Brenda Kay Ledford

Thank a veteran for his or her service for our country on Memorial Day!

Decoration Day

 

Today I decorated the graves of my parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, and great-great-grandparent.  Many of my relatives are buried at Many Forks Baptist Church Cemetery in the Gum Log section of Towns County, Georgia.

Many Forks Baptist Church holds Decoration Day on the fourth Sunday of May.  Many churches don't hold these occasions anymore.  This is an old-time tradition in the Blue Ridge Mountains.

My family attended the decoration when I grew up in the mountains.  Some people gathered on Saturday before the Sunday event to decorate the graves of loved ones.  On Sunday morning worship service was held in the country church.  After peaching, they held dinner-on-the-grounds.  Back in the 1960's-1970's, they built tables under the shade trees for the lunch.  The mountain women brought boxes of food to spread on the linen-covered tables.  It was indeed a feast.  The women fixed their favorite recipes for the decoration.

You can see in the photo that the women brought a wonderful selection of homemade desserts.  Pies, banana pudding, blackberry cobblers, black walnut cakes, pound cakes, coconut cakes, and many other mouth-watering desserts graced the tables.

After the "feast" folks gathered again in the church for an afternoon of groups singing old-times gospel songs such as "I'll Fly Away, Oh Glory, I'll Fly Away in the morning..."

It was a bittersweet gathering each year.  You honored and recalled your ancestors, had fellowship with kinfolks you hadn't seen for a  long time, and worshipped in the little country church.  The Many Forks Baptist Church cemetery was beautiful with the flowers and American flags decorated the resting places of loved ones.

Many Forks Baptist Church Cemetery beautifully adorned with flowers on Decoration Day.

One of the groups that performed Gospel music on Decoration Day at Many Forks Church.

Mother's Day

 

                                                       Brenda and her Mama Blanche

GARDENING

I put on Mama's T-shirt,

donned her jade jacket

that she wore to garden.

Her sweet spirit remained,

I felt her loving  presence

planting my sunflower seeds.

She savored gardening,

she grew vegetables and flowers,

her favorite color was green.

The wind blew through

grass like waves on the sea,

a royal-blue tent watched

above the Cherry Mountain.

A rain crow resounded

and tranquility filled my soul.

                 --Brenda Kay Ledford

I wish all my blogger friends a very Happy Mother's Day.

Love,

Brenda