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Anne is an award winning poet. Her poems have appeared in numerous magazines and newspapers. She is a member of the Florida State Poets Association, the National Federation of State Poetry Societies Inc., the Florida Historical Society, and the Space Coast Writers’ Guild.
Southern Roses
Roses grown all over the world
Can be found
In Southern gardens, being fussed
Over, carefully tended;
Or growing wild,
Willy nilly, over broken
Fences in neglected gardens,
Prickly thorns protecting
Blushing blossoms.
Those same roses,
Hardy of stock with
Fragrance so sweet,
Grew in my great grandmother’s
Garden, my grandmother’s and
Mother’s, and prized for
Generations.
Now, as part of my heritage,
I am the guardian of
The exquisite blossoms;
Tenderly caring
For the plants;
Cheerfully giving cuttings
To all seeking the legacy,
The Southern rose.
“Love planted a rose
And the world turned sweet -”
Katherine Lee Bates (1859 - 1929)
Mosquito Beaters
Long ago, Cocoa just a dot on map,
The beach, a haven;
Watching it grow,
Newcomers settling in,
Speedy had a vision in 1986 -
Keeping friendships,
Memories alive;
Annual gathering,
Naming it Mosquito Beaters,
By acclamation, after palmetto
Switches used to brush off mosquitos.
Grew from just a few who
Enjoyed reminiscing the olden days;
To inclusion of many,
Meeting second Friday night and
Most of Saturday every March.
Studies have not been made,
Polls not taken;
But a sure bet,
No other town or city
Has undertaken such a successful
Project.
Year after year, after attending
Mosquito Beaters, out-of-town
House guests gather ‘round my table,
Feasting on ham, black-eyed peas,
Potato salad, cornbread;
Goblets of wind sparkling like
Crystal stars in dark velvet sky
Now littered with artificial lights;
Reading, absorbing every word
Mosquito Beater Magazine,
Still talking, reminiscing,
Dreading the thought of parting -
Until next year!