This summer has been, and will continue to be, a summer of travel. Three days after school vacation began, we were off for about 2 1/2 weeks of travel in Iceland and Wales. As I write this post, I’m about an hour away from leaving for Martha’s Vineyard to spend time with my sisters. (I’m crossing my fingers that I can figure out the tech to pre-schedule publishing this and then remember to link up as well!)
I spend a lot of time taking pictures when I travel. (Sorry, travel companions! Thanks for your patience!) Once I’m home again, I love to look back through the pictures and relive the experiences. Sometimes I’m inspired to create image poems, or in this case, quasi “travelku”.
amidst the chaos
of craggy volcanic rock
lupines blaze
@Molly Hogan
Creating image poems spills over into daily life. They’re a bit addictive!
garden weather:
huge cumulous clusters drift
across a green sky
@Molly Hogan
Finally, I’ve found myself, again and again, feeling so fortunate that my travel ends with the pleasure of home.
after the journey
unpacking the gifts
of coming home
©Molly Hogan
This week’s Poetry Friday is hosted by Tanita S. Davis. Click on over to find some poetry to savor! I’ll be late to read and comment, but will swing around once I’m back home again.
Nix the comfort zone 
“I love to look back through the pictures and relive the experiences.” I, too, take pictures thinking of the blog I might/will write. Selecting the ones to include, drafting, and more drafting, gives the opportunity to relive these times/moments. As Annie Lamott says, “Writing is its own reward.”
Our daughter Molly knows the meaning of unpacking the gift of coming home. Her family was exploring the Northwest, Olympic and Crater Lake National Parks over the past week and a half. The morning of their Wednesday departure this week from Portland, Oregon, she got the message that their flight was cancelled, not delayed, but flat out cancelled! She could reschedule in 3-4 days. Creatively, she found a flight the next day out of SEATTLE, three hours away by bus. They made it home late Thursday night. She knows to her core this Friday morning of unpacking the gift of coming home.
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I’m amazed by how many people’s flights are being cancelled. That just happened to my sister (although it was due to storms) and she missed the first day of our get-together on Martha’s Vineyard. I’m glad that Molly found a creative solution and was able to get back home sooner!
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Oh…I LOVE all of these poems this week! I keep trying to find my ‘creative art niche’ and I think it always comes back to photography. Those are some gorgeous pictures, of which, your poetry enhances the beauty. 🙂 I’m glad you are enjoying your summer traveling…to some really cool places!
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Thanks, Debbie. This really is a summer of travel. I got home yesterday and am off again on Thursday. After that I’m hoping to relax into August—though, as a teacher, those words (relax and August) tend to be mutually exclusive!
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I see it more as a curse of coming home.
I’m a Rambling Man by nature.
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Change your lens! I’m always glad to come back home to you 🙂
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I love how your amazing images lead you to write travel-ku! And coming home is always a gift.
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I often think the gift is that for me, coming home IS a gift. I am so fortunate!
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Beautiful haiku, Molly! I love that green sky. Sounds like a restorative summer. xo
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Well, it’s definitely busy! Thanks, Tabatha!
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Well, THIS is an utter delight! I take pictures when I travel but I’m going to borrow your travelku idea to help me recall what I felt about what I saw. I’m all for new ways to enjoy the journey; thanks for sharing, especially the glorious drifts of lupine. I love Iceland!
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Thanks, Tanita. Iceland really is blow your mind beautiful! I’m hoping to create a few more travelku this summer. It is a fun way to revisit my experiences/adventures 🙂
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Those drifting “cumulous clusters” are perfect in that “green sky!”
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Every one a gem–thanks for picturing the world for us through your photos. The words are gravy (but less brown and opaque than gravy).
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Reinforcing the memory with your travelku is such a wonderful idea, Molly! Loved all of these.
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so love those cumulous clusters across your green sky! Welcome home, Molly!
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Molly, you gave me the idea to write travel-kus when I take photos on my vacation to Long Island shores and then to Cape May waters in New Jersey. I like the sound of your travel-kus and of course the vivid photos you shared. The hydrangeas make beautiful “cumulous clusters”. This poem was especially interesting.
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Molly, these are each so precious! Those cumulous hydrangeas on the green sky, unpacking home, lupines in that magical setting. Everything is beautiful here. Travelku is a great poetry form. 🙂
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