The Outside of Time

For You, Friend,

this Valentine's Day, I intend to stand
for as long as I can on a kitchen stool
and hold back the hands of the clock,
so that wherever you are, you may walk
even more lightly in your loveliness;
so that the weak, mid-February sun
(whose chill I will feel from the face
of the clock) cannot in any way
lessen the lights in your hair, and the wind
(whose subtle insistence I will feel
in the minute hand) cannot tighten
the corners of your smile. People
drearily walking the winter streets
will long remember this day:
how they glanced up to see you
there in a storefront window, glorious,
strolling along on the outside of time.

from Valentines: Poems
by Ted Kooser, former U.S. poet Laureate
winner of the Pulitzer Prize in Poetry

This evening we had Valentine's dinner with a small group of special friends at Cyndi's home. She prepared sangria, bruschetta, tossed salad, lasagna, garlic bread, and chocolate dipped strawberries, all with organic and whole grain ingredients. While the menu was a favorite and the ingredients the best, it was the people gathered around the table and the conversation that was so nourishing and satisfying.

The moments with these friends are too few, are not often enough, and always go too quickly. If I could stop the clock, "hold back the hands" while with these friends, I would. There's not a heart, a Valentine heart, in this photo because the heart is in the camaraderie that happens when we gather. I read them the poem above by Kooser and several others of his and the conversation and laughter were delightful.
And tomorrow . . .

Tomorrow is Valentines -- WOOHOO!!!

Good night from a very late Southern California.
Rosie (& Mr. Fun), aka Carol