Mindful Methods for Life

Sharing my joy here on FB, in case you didn’t get this by email!

Regenerating Joy plus the elephant in the room!

The Dempsey Center opened in 2008 by actor Patrick Dempsey to support those with a cancer diagnosis. Their wellness programs and workshops are free. They have two locations in Maine. I’m proud to have donated my books.

Three California quail land with a plop in the dirt under the rose bushes. I’m hidden, tucked into my chair in the shade under the eaves. They waddle and peck, black crowns bobbing.
It must be 72 degrees, that’s what I think when the breeze petting my face is perfection.
It’s the kind of day to
open the latches and swing the doors wide on the raised garden beds.
Better yet, remove them from their rickety hinges,
so the cartel of squirrels and families of rodents and rabbits can feast to their petite quivering hearts content.

California Tortoiseshell

While treading water,

I noticed something dark
on a fuzzy yellow
kangaroo paw.

Charcoal,
I thought.

Then carbon.

Then rough bark.

I kept taking snapshots.

Each time I swam closer,
it remained a mystery.

Then a second creature,
its twin,
swooped in.

Together they pirouetted
into the cloudless sky,

flashes of orange
where bark had been.

A mating ritual?

A tussle for territory?

I couldn’t tell.

Twice they vanished.

Twice one returned alone

to rest
and replenish

on the fuzzy yellow
kangaroo paw,

where fire
folded itself
back into bark.

—— Julie Potiker

Volunteers!

Trying to do all of it, except I have a hard time crying. How about you?

I'm so grateful that one of my friends took the time and made the effort to leave a review of Gentle Currents on Amazon! Imagine if some of the folks who enjoyed the book launch party did it too...then more people would find it which would be awesome!
Here is the review!
5.0 out of 5 stars Instantly Calming--Like a Mini Retreat in Book Form
Reviewed in the United States on May 2, 2026
Verified Purchase
Gentle Currents invites you into Julie Potiker’s world of mindful awareness, where each poem creates a quiet space to breathe, reflect, and simply be. Her rhythmic, soothing words flow seamlessly alongside Edward Kane’s luminous watercolors, making the experience both meditative and visually enchanting. This is more than a collection of poems—it’s a small refuge, a thoughtful gift for anyone who could use a moment of calm, healing, and reconnection with nature.

Had to stop reading the news, and gaze at the flowers instead.