"For the Buyer of Breakfasts in Salem" by Colleen Michaels + Cheddar Scramble

While waiting at a stoplight last year, I witnessed something that stayed with me. A homeless man stood on the divider holding up his cardboard sign asking for food and money and help, and in the minute before my light turned green, I watched from my rear view mirror as a man extended his hand with a few bills. It was one of those gestures that likely went unnoticed to most, but the kindness of this stranger informed the rest of my morning. I couldn't help but smile, shake off my frustrations, and believe that it was going to be a good day. Reading this poem by Colleen Michaels helped me remember the experience, because her poem captures the joy of doing something for others.

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"Cutting Thyme" by Linda Parsons Marion + Fried Eggs with Herb Oil

After some time away, it always takes a day or so to reestablish myself in the kitchen. Although the refrigerator is usually lacking some ingredient I need or crave, the thought of trekking to the store minutes after unpacking never feels like a worthwhile endeavor. Let it wait until tomorrow.

What follows the arrival, the mail sorting, the laundry starting, the opening windows to let some fresh air in, and the dog walking, is the question of what to eat. Having decided against going to the store, and tired of eating out, I'm left with a few choices that can be made from the pantry, plus anything else that survived our week away in the refrigerator.

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"The Residency" by David Yezzi + Scrambled Eggs with Red Pepper Puree

We creative types need to stick together, don't we? There's nothing better that knowing you are part of a community of like-minded people who get inspired and excited by the same things that drive you. When I started blogging in 2008, I was unaware of the community I was entering, and that I would actually make genuine friendships from it. I thought about all this because of two things: a poem and a magazine article. Though unrelated, the poem happened to be placed in the middle of an article about loneliness in the age of social media. The poem is about a writer's residency, and the experience of communing with other artists in a somewhat isolated environment, in this case, in the woods, in a cabin with a writing table.

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"The Corn Harvest" by William Carlos Williams + Farmer's Egg Sandwich with Basil Aioli

Today I'm collaborating with fellow blogger Megan from Feasting on Art. We both take a similar approach to our food blogs. She creates recipes inspired by paintings, and I do the same for poetry. It seemed like only a matter of time before our paths crossed and we decided to pursue a joint venture.When Megan and I first started discussing this post, William Carlos Williams immediately came to mind. He wrote a series of poems titled Pictures of Brueghel, in response to Brueghel's paintings. If you're curious about Brueghel, head over to learn more about the painting, too.

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"Boy and Egg" by Naomi Shihab Nye + Creamy Scrambled Eggs

When I was in college, I once heard Naomi Shihab Nye give a reading and remember thinking how confident she was. Not in a loud, overbearing way, but she just stood in her poems so strongly, the way roots go down into the earth and support the large tree branches above it. Her voice had a certain quietness, but each word was spoken with a strength like she knew she had painstakingly chosen every word and placed them on the page just so, and that each word was exactly right.

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