Saturday shoutout for April 11, 2026. Heavenly silence and world peace!
Make it so in your thoughts, heart and soul, so that it may begin to materialize in our Earthly reality. Things are changing for the better, it just needs a little more of your help. Pure thought without reservations or doubts. Certainty, that’s the ticket. Reality will follow and eventually catch up.
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Monday poetry to excite the heart and soul. Today’s poem “Identity”, carries a resonance like a violin.
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Identity
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There’s a golden thread
sewn into the fabric
of our existence. It is electrified.
It carries a resonance
like a violin. It vibrates
at the speed of life.
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The artist hears it.
It is the rhythm and rhyme
in his lyrics. It puts the verve
of living color into the brush
of the painter. It makes the dancer
leap and the sculptor sculpt.
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We sing. We imagine,
we create. We bring
the beauty and harmony
of love, affection and family.
We know, not think.
We help, not preach.
We nurture destiny
the best that we can.
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Richard Rensberry, March 9, 2026
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Off The Beaten Path’s Shoutout Saturday # 4 belongs to Michigan Artist and Entrepreneur Darcy Kann of Mio, Michigan. She is the proprietor of Rusted Roots Art & Apothecary. Darcy’s entrepreneurial reach touches the community in many heartwarming ways through her artistic talents. She conducts art workshops for both children and adults throughout the year. These workshops are generally available in-store or elsewhere in the town.
So yes! I want to give big shoutout to Darcy Kann.
The term Apothecary is not a commonly used term around town, but it better describes the practical use of natural medicines, herbs, teas, salves and liniments you won’t find at the local Drug Store. However, you will find an abundance of these items at the Rusted Roots Store in Mio, Michigan. The shops proprietor, Darcy Kann has an assortment of herbal teas, rubs and pain relievers on her Apothecary shelves. I for one am a firm believer in Natural medicines, especially since they helped me recover from my near death experience invoked while in the hands of our the modern medical model of corporate medicine. You can even pick up a copy of the book I wrote about that harrowing experience off the store’s shelves.
I, for one, am a firm believer in Natural medicines, especially since they helped me recover from my near death experience invoked while in the hands of our the modern medical model of corporate medicine. You can even pick up a copy of the book I wrote about that harrowing experience off the store’s shelves.
Other items in the store include a vast array of art, clothes, coffee cups, dog toys and jewelry.
Of course art is an all encompassing theme. There are paintings, sculptures and a beautiful array of handicrafts, including masterfully created quilts of many sizes and colors.
I personally have a pet peeve about shopping locally in support of our many talented artisans and local businesses. The Rusted Roots Art & Apothecary is located in Mio, Michigan at 109 E. 10th St. Drop by for some artistic and healing treats and say hello.
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Sleigh bells and chickadees are Christmas music in the Amish Countryside where I reside. Come every Saturday and Sunday their mighty horses are hitched and we hear the clip-pity clop of their hooves added into the musical mix. It is a sound of joy that reverberates with holiday thanks for all the blessings bestowed by bird and beast.
This joy is unadulterated poetry. It is the heartbeat of nature. It is Merry Christmas.
*************************************************************************************************************Richard Rensberry, Author of “Kirtland’s Warblers” children’s book, a rhyme for young readers available in paperback on Amazon.
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December, for Nature’s artists, is a pristine white canvas and Michigan is abundant with an array of colorful artists with feathery brushes. Cardinals are my favorite, closely followed by the chickadees and nut hatches. Even the greedy and raucous bluejay is a winter scape Monet. And how about those redheaded and crenelated woodpeckers? Crazy Picassos in the wild.
Kirtland’s Warblers, a delightful children’s book, is available on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/dp/194073679X
The river chuckled
full of joyful cherubs, and the maples
bent close to hear
the whispers and gossip
of family and friends as tenders prepared the beer. Continue reading
I believe cultures resonate to the vibrations artists create and instill upon their work. Author’s words carry the weight of their focal points. This focus can help or harm the society into which their creations permeate.
As an example, a comedian stands in front of a community and pokes fun not at everyone in general but at a select group of people. The vibration moves and resonates with like seeds of prejudice harbored by his audience and grows. Soon we have ill feelings being expressed against a select group of people. Good or bad? Continue reading
