Old Neanderthals: Collected Haiku

By Steve K. Bertrand

**The information about the book is not available as of this time.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Mar 26, 2021
• ISBN: 9781664165328

Steve K. Bertrand

For this pictorial history of Paine Field, Steve K. Bertrand has selected more than 200 images from the local community, historical societies, regional libraries, and state archives. He has traced the rich history of Paine Field from its earliest days to its present status as a bustling airport and commercial aviation center. These photographs provide a glimpse into the people and events that influenced this small community in the Pacific Northwest.

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Copyright © 2021 by Steve K. Bertrand.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Rev. date: 03/25/2021

Xlibris

844-714-8691

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"Somewhere in your past you knew the Ancient ways.

This is why you find yourself being drawn

by a deep seeded urge.

An urge so powerful that you don’t question it…

Or fight it…

You long for it."

-Unknown

Preface

"Years ago, anthropologist Margaret Mead was asked by a student what she considered to be the first sign of civilization in a culture. The student expected Mead to talk about fishhooks or clay pots or grinding stones.

But no. Mead said that the first sign of civilization in an ancient culture was a femur (thighbone) that had been broken and then healed. Mead explained that in the animal kingdom, if you break your leg, you die. You cannot run from danger, get to the river for a drink or hunt for food. You are meat for prowling beasts. No animal survives a broken leg long enough for the bone to heal.

‘A broken femur that has healed is evidence that someone has taken time to stay with the one who fell, has bound up the wound, has carried the person to safety and has tended the person through recovery. Helping someone else through difficulty is where civilization starts’," said Mead.

When old Neanderthals

could no longer hunt,

they painted cave walls.

Is it not a compliment,

when water reflects – forest,

sky, mountain?

In a small corner

of the yard,

brown toad squats.

Grandpa’s window

would open, but for fifty years

of paint keeping it closed.

That pine,

Chief Joseph, how it brightens

winter coastline!

Ah, the

deciduous trees in their

autumn splendor!

Grandpa wakes up,

listens to the news, then –

puts in his false teeth.

Autumn afternoon –

birds at my koi pond drinking

& bathing.

Those amber leaves

we admired –

burning in a barrel.

Gathering fallen leaves,

I turn around –

more upon the ground.

In the garden,

stone Buddha gathering

fallen leaves.

Autumn –

spider has moved his home

somewhere else.

At the beach,

broken clam shell on

a mossy rock.

Windy morning –

Hush… Hush… says

incoming tide.

Brooding sky –

how dark

the Salish Sea.

Those gulls –

how they delight in pooping on cars

in Lighthouse Park!

Snohomish River –

feeling

a bit feisty today!

The neighbor’s

rock cairn – toppled by

a snow flake!

Spring snowmelt

in the mountains – how high

& muddy the rivers.

Monday morning,

headed to the bus stop –

surprised by rain.

When I watch moon

kiss the ocean, there is the thought

of you, love.

A country garden,

laden

with Russian sage.

Autumn morning –

deer feeding

on Toad lilies.

You would think

the Cornflower would be yellow,

not blue!

The setting sun

on a field

of blooming cotton.

Along the garden path,

the pink

creeping thyme.

At the edge