Janice Mathis lives in Acworth , GA with her husband of 36 years. She works as a Medical Assistant and Referral Coordinator for a private Physician group. She has worked in the medical field for over 30 years. Janice has always enjoyed music and poetry, but has only taken to writing seriously in the past three years. Using writing as an emotional outlet, she finds inspiration in the beauty of nature, the emotional dynamics of relationships and love of her family.  She has previously published a collection of poetry, “Clouds in the Looking Glass”,  through Kindle Direct Publishing, and most recently has had work by published by AlienBudda Press.

Fishing in the Rain

I sat atop one of the large boulders
lining the seawall in the softly falling
rain of a late summer shower.
The waters of the bay reflected the dull
grey of the cloud shadowed sky, broken
only by the occasional sea gull drifting by.

The only sounds to reach my ears
were the slow rolling ripples gently
lapping against the rocky shore,
and the soft tinkling of sprinkling
rain drops into the depths of the
warm welcoming waters.

I watched mesmerized as individual
droplets struck the surface with a
resounding plink and witnessed the
formation of concentric circles joining
circles to form intricate but symmetrical
patterns across the expanse of rippling water,
even as it rolled toward the shore.

And in that moment,
on a boulder by the bay,
with rivulets of rain running
down my face;
I felt connected.
I felt just for that moment...
One with the boulder, with the rain
and the bay.
I felt at peace.

Good Night Prayers and Lullabies

I remember how you used to tuck me in,
pulling the covers up under my chin,
then you would sit there
on the side of my bed; just to
make sure prayers had been said.

Maybe sometimes we'd read a story, or
you'd tell tall tales from when you were a boy.
Some nights you'd sing me a silly song
about a froggy gone a’courtin riding a horse,
and I would laugh at your deep froggy voice

To me you were always larger than life,
not just my dad, but my shining knight.
I know you weren't perfect, but
you were damn close,
and a defining presence in my life

But much too quickly, time passed us by,
and I found myself at your bedside.
where I prayed the Lord your soul to keep,
kissed your forehead; said goodbye,
and I sang for you a lullaby.

October Evening

I sit on the porch swing
in the fading amber light
hands hugging a warm mug
watching as falling leaves
drift slowly to the ground

In the distance I hear a flock
of honking geese on the wing.
Wafting on the cooling breeze
I smell the smoke of a
neighbor burning leaves.

With a sudden sense of
melancholy and a chill I rise,
leave the darkening night behind
to the little brown spider busily
spinning her web in the eave.