Poetry

Each and Every One

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This was taken on one of the most beautiful nights during a trip with my family around Ireland this summer. Before heading south, we spent a few days in Northern Ireland and walked along the lovely Ballycastle Beach, a slight curve of land made of many, many rocks and a strip of sand. On one end, the Glenshesk River meets the Atlantic, and at the other end, a boardwalk stretches over rocks that reach into the water. The waves were extremely calm that evening, and it being nearly the Summer Solstice, sunset came just after 10:00p.m. Rathlin Island can be seen in the distance (and although not shown in these photos, Scotland can also be viewed from the beach).

Ballycastle Beach, Northern Ireland

With so many rocks,
it could’ve been easy enough to ignore
their beauty,
to look over, look past,
step across
monotony,
but truly, so many rocks
made walking across in loose sandals
a slow task, and thankfully,
encouraged a moment’s pause,
because with a closer look
remarkable difference
became clear
each and every rock
piled on that beach
just another rock among many
became amazingly new
ancient
full of Story

Ballycastle Beach, Northern Ireland

Softened
by the waves of change
beautiful, unique,
each and every one
among many

Ballycastle Beach, Northern Ireland

Reaching out,
picking up one after another
allowed me the chance
to get closer to their stories
to know them
a little better

Ballycastle Beach, Northern Ireland

Holding each one in my hand
felt like holding a friend

Ballycastle Beach, Northern Ireland

a time to marvel

Ballycastle Beach, Northern Ireland

love

Ballycastle Beach, Northern Ireland

We are like these rocks—
we are one of many
each
and every one
softened by the waves of change
beautiful, unique
full of Story

What’s your Story?

Ballycastle Beach, Northern Ireland

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Where Growth Takes Root

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Poulnabrone, County Clare, Ireland

wind and rain
freeze and thaw
those things in life
that chip away tiny particles of ourselves

leave holes

where growth takes root

-Kate McKinney
Poulnabrone, County Clare, Ireland

What have you lost?

What are you missing?

How might this be an opening for growth?

When to Hold On is a coming-of-age verse novel set in the Driftless Area of Wisconsin, a journey that rides the unpredictable hills and valleys of grief toward the healing truths of reconnecting with oneself, those we love, and the natural world.

“One of the best books I have ever read; one that has affected me deeply, giving me greater understanding.” -Amazon review

“We love who we love…Beautifully written, this is a story of finding yourself when everything and everyone around you feels lost.” -Amazon review

Getting Up Close

/ katemckinney79 / 2 Comments

When exactly did these
feathery green leaves
of summer
transform into rainbows?

I could get lost
in their colors
crouching low
breathing in
the mix of autumn’s
changes.

What else do we miss
when we simply walk past?

~ Kate McKinney

Birch leaves collect,
curled edges folding into
one another,
light and shadows turning
scattered shapes
into glorious sculptures.

~ Kate McKinney
Autumn Flame Maple



What would it be like
to climb right into
those branches
with all that red and green
so close?
Would it feel like sitting
in the middle of
an orchestra?
Those complementary
colors
sending out
visual vibrations?

~ Kate McKinney
Asters

A painter’s delight—
purple asters in afternoon
sunlight

Asters

When clouds float past,
they add hues
of dusty gray
and deep blue shadows
below.

Clouds over Blue Mounds

A tiny, tattered
oak seedling can withstand
wind
and takes its time
turning red.
Change can take its toll,
but each year,
this little one
grows.

~ Kate McKinney

My Book

WHEN TO HOLD ON is a girl-meets-girl YA verse novel and draws from its setting in the Driftless Area the way roots draw water from the ground.

YA novel-in-verse

Indie Bound // Barnes&Noble // Amazon

Brynn Bailey, a quiet teen, always preferred the sound of the creek over talking, and that becomes even more true as she struggles to accept the recent death of her mother. Then she meets Zoe who seems to have all the words in the world, and Brynn wishes she knew what to say. As long as it’s not about her grief. But unspoken words have a way of stacking up, like bills on a counter. Soon, she is at risk of losing both love and the only place she calls home. To save them, she’ll need to learn when to listen and when to speak up, when to let go and when to hold on.

A Sneak Peek into the Novel

THE PAINTER

“I like to paint,”
she offers

which is just enough
to transform my silence into a question:

“What do you like to paint?”

Thankfully, it gets her talking instead.

She tucks a frizzy curl behind one ear.
“For me…it’s more about the way
I see whatever I’m painting. I try to
get up close
or pick an unusual angle. Try to see
what others might miss.
I use lots of color because
even grass isn’t just green. It’s also
yellow and brown, blue and purple,
even pink.”

~ Kate McKinney, WHEN TO HOLD ON

I’ll leave you with one last image—a river birch with blue sky peeking between yellow leaves.

Happy Autumn!

River Birch

Walking at Twilight

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My eyes seek twilight

Movement in spite of stillness

Hushed breath, wind through grass

— Kate McKinney

Into darkness

I pour myself

Into shadows of blue and deep greens

As though someone

just out of reach

reaches for me

— Kate McKinney

I’ve been sick for almost two weeks, and I’m just beginning to feel better. Early in my illness I took a very slow walk in the twilight just outside my home. A small voice in my head chided me for bringing my camera, saying I wouldn’t get any “good” pictures at this time of day. But I’m glad my curious, creative soul won out because it was one of the most nurturing things I did for myself during this time. To look for the beauty has always been my way of survival. To listen to the quiet, to notice what can so often be missed. It gives back to me—this looking, this noticing. It feeds my being.

It reminds me of a moment that happens in my newly released girl-meets-girl YA verse novel, When to Hold On, when the main characters, Brynn and Zoe, take a walk to the edge of where a restored prairie begins.

It is at the edge of town. A moment on the edge of their relationship. In the darkness, there is light. In the quiet, there are sounds. Brynn shares this with Zoe, and they discover a closeness fragile and new. While the thought of kissing this girl she’s had a crush on does cross Brynn’s mind, it is far more important to make space for Zoe in her world. To invite her into the quiet and very private space she usually keeps. It is that connection in that moment that brings them closer.

I encourage you, dear reader, to stay curious and keep looking, keep listening. May you find something in the twilight that feeds your soul.

You can read more about When to Hold On at this page and can support indie bookstores by ordering a copy through Bookshop.org.