role models

it is autumn in los angeles

bright and sunny

i read mary oliver on the porch

i stare at the hills and think

of that silver woman

in her golden years

pressing pearls on the page

fixing diamond thoughts in wood

will i ever be that wise

that elegant?

in my mind i am

forever just a child.

the grace of our mothers

and our grandmothers

more radiant than jewels

more shimmering than metals

it is perhaps like the autumn sun

in los angeles