In The Name of Daybreak

 

I am swearing an oath to uphold 

these words from this moment on.

May they live strong and long in me. 

To be:

"a guardian of nature,

a healer of misery,

a messenget of wonder,

an architect of peace."

I Have Found Such Joy

"I wish I might tell every woman who goes seeking far

for some elusive, feverish delight, that very close to home

the great joys are: the elemental things. . ."

"The Message" seems tack sharp clear this week, doesn't it?

We already have what we need...it might be buried deep,

but it's there...quietly waiting for us to notice.

It's not necessarily loud and bodacious...

more often steady, patient, and reliable...

the foundation holding up the entire enterprise.

 

The Message

"It would be like looking for your own eyes."

I find this idea that what you seek is already within you

is lush, and rich with enchantment.

The paradox is a relief and a riddle...

it places our very own particular genius in sharp relief

against the backdrop of "not enough" that stalks us.

It lightens the load of constantly striving to live up

to something which already exists.  

I'm thinking ruby slippers.

 

Of Course I Have Lines On My Face

"of course i have lines on my face,

life keeps folding me open 

like a map of all the women I've been."

Wrinkles as a sign of joy...as a sign of becoming.

That's a new "wrinkle" isn't it?

I'll take it.

 

And Still

The river with its rich, fertile being and meanings

"keeps coming, touching me, passing by"

as I gather a lifetime of verses and prose.

It's uncanny how many times and in how many places

the river shows up with an encouraging air.

It's given me chills over and over to

see how it has wended its way...

quietly, softly, 

all along my journey.

"it's pale, infallible voice singing."

 

How Did You Do It?

"I’ve been wondering about all the ways we survive, 

all the things people do to adjust 

and skirt and catch a breath, 

the way everyone is managing both to rest and become."

Staying sane and civil is an accomplishment! 

Holding fast to the values we cherish. 

We resist and dissent, let our desires be known,

stand up for what we believe in and encourage each other.

"I would like to know—how do you stay awake given all this? 

What keeps you moving from one moment to the next? 

What has sustained your love  for the world?"

These are excellent questions we can mull over

and answer for ourselves and each other.

I'd be interested in hearing if you care to share.

 

Things Shouldn't Be So Hard

While this seems a wee bit bleak this morning,

"a life should leave deep tracks"

and the way she names them touched me.

"The passage of life should show; it should abrade.

And when life stops, a certain space--however small--

should be left scarred by the grand and damaging parade."

With all respect and perhaps some rose colored glasses,

I wish it didn't have to be so hard. 

My wish is that the scars and damage are places

of revelation and recognition 

of the splendor and dazzling woven in...

that's easy to wish from here,

My heart breaks for 

all the horrors some human lives

are subjected to.

It Could Be

The current state of this country and its impact on our world is

testing all I believe in regarding softness, and mercy,

 especially mercy. 

I can feel the anger swell when I think about 

mercy shown in the past and where we are today.

I’m leaning into justice. 

Merciful and appropriate justice.  

I would add just a few more things that matter:

clean water, healthy soil and unpolluted air.

Plus truth, justice and fairness.

 

Pledge Of Kindness

I will remember this poem from now on when

reciting the pledge of allegiance...

I will think of kindness when I gaze on our flag...

the one I now fly at half staff...

Yes, yes, yes to "the possibilities for which it stands"

because they are numerous and exciting to envision.

And yes, yes, yes to "one planet under the stars".  

It is our precious home and we must make certain

to care for and nourish, heal and  renew the generous bounty

we're given by her presence.

And another triple yes to "interdependent on

liberty and justice for all".

With emphasis on "for all".

 

Still, What I Want

"Casting aside the weight of facts"

 is not something I recommend 

as we're currently experiencing 

the reality and the consequences

of actually doing so.

Mary Oliver's speaking metaphorically

 and in that context, 

I understand and resonate 

with floating a little above this difficult world.  

Interesting how the intention behind 

the "casting aside of facts" alters the meaning 

and the outcome dramatically.  

The riper I become, the clearer it gets that

pretty much everything is neither all good nor all bad.

For a poet and a president to use similar words and actions

to describe stunningly opposite perspectives,

provides a precise example of the paradox.

 

We Forget

"And maybe we have to forget or we would be too stupified 

with gratitude for every raindrop and eyelash to get through the day..."

I love the phrase "stupified with gratitude". 

There are plenty of unworthy things to be stupified by, aren't there?

So let's "cast upon ourselves, a spell against indifference."

It's possible to be aware of things without succumbing to numbness

or burying our heads in the sand?

We're certainly getting plenty of opportunites to practice.

Let's "move through the world with an inner bow at every littlest thing

that prevailed against the odds of otherwise in order to exist."

Let the noise and chaos exist in its layer of temporary.

We will keep on adding layer after layer of wonder 

of what is enduring and extraordinary, 

existing in even the tiniest forms of magnificense.

 

Our Sun

Oh, how I love this.

I want to be like the sun.

I am not;

 at least not yet.

I constantly catch myself measuring...

comparing...thinking in duality....

either one or the other. 

 It does not make me proud.

"Does not choose the daffodil over the daphne,

does not care what you believe in,

what color your skin,

how colorful your credentials..."

and on and on

No walls or borders or IOU's.

"Does not choose me over you."

". . .bringing very last thing to life.

Bringing life to every last thing."

 

You Deserve

Full stop.

 

In Praise of Impermanence

This is so richly written, I hesitate adding anything but 

my grateful attention to each stanza with admiration and appreciation.

That being said, I shudder at the thought...

"the earth won't be around forever."

Followed by thinking forever is a long, long time.

It will not happen in my lifetime or my grandchildren's

or their grandchildren's.

Some of us have some trouble 

accepting impermanence.

Yet, here it is and here are we.

 

Before The War

Sometimes, Nikita's poetry guts me.

And this one did just that.

Filling my heart with goodness, 

means weaving sorrow into the tapestry 

nestled in close with glory and gratitude.

I wish it wasn't so, yet, there's no escaping it

no matter how diligently I avoid it.

I continue to carry it as it carries me.

Learning to let it flow through me,

to recognize and absorb the painful,

to feel it strong and release it 

as it moves into the river of time is the lesson.

Overcoming the temptation to turn away

without wallowing in despair is the challenge.

I'm grateful you are here.

Together we can navigate 

the wretched and wonderful

paradoxes of our lives.

 

The Book

". . .to be beautiful is also to be brief and simple, 

is to rise up and be glorious, and then vanish."

This is true in the big picture of our universe, isn't it?

It's what we, as humans are meant to be.

How I wish we could all be beautiful before we vanish...

or at least treat each other from that perspective.

"the usual daily foolishness that comes to so little

so far as the real things matter: eternity, the unseen,

the unrecognized, the filling of the heart with goodness..."

A recipe for where to focus our attention, perhaps?

My personal objective is to fill my heart with goodness.

We humans can write the story of our lives...lilies and lichen

and countless splendid entities on earth, cannot.

What if we could at least attempt to write their story for them?

Write the biography of a honey bee, a dandelion, American Columbo,

or any more-than-human being who draws us in...

the Milky Way, Venus, Pluto...

 

Chop Wood, Carry Water

I adore the simplicity of this.

Any tiny task qualifies...

"Every living being devotes their time

to the task of survival."

We are beyond fortunate...for many of us,

survival does not have to be front and center 

on our to-do list.

I deeply appreciate it doesn't have to be.

I want that privilege to belong to everyone.

"From inbreath to exhale,

 from first light to last,

prepare what keeps the fire,

gather what quenches our thirst."

What keeps your fire?

What quenches your thirst?

 

Please Tell Me A Story

Isn't this a treat?

I love the turning of everything inside out and opposite.

"Tell me a story where slivers of mental landscape 

puncture the periphery of deceit and 

shifts in the wind help to balance the 

heavy of unsettled."

Yes, we can puncture the  periphery of deceit!

Let's turn this world around.

"Tell me a story where new only translates 

what the soul knows of ancient."

I'm coming to believe ancient is not the same as old.

Ancient is the invisible and mighty power. . .

the unseen forces working for the good.

It always was and always will be.

The infinite land of soul where magic and 

enchantment become commonplace.

"where grass is fluent in sentient knowledge

and trees are a mandala of prayer."

 

There Are Mornings

"Some mornings in summer, I step outside

and the sky opens and pours itself into me..."

Isn't it interesting?  

Even if its raining, the sky is pouring itself into me...

"But the plot calls for me to live, be ordinary, 

This resonates like a quiet gong with me.

It's everything to "live and be ordinary."

"...say nothing to anyone."

Hmmm...how can one manage this?

It seems ironic to hear a poet recommend saying nothing.

Plus, don't we all speak whether we say anything or not?

Doesn't our body, our presence, speak constantly?

The energy we carry may be silent, 

yet isn't it still telling its own story?

This makes me want to listen more carefully.

Why are the "mirrors burning"?

 

Hope

"in the spaciousness of uncertainty is room to act."

The question for each of us is: what is mine to do?

"you may be able to influence the outcome --

you alone or in concert with a few dozen or

several million others."

Every Friday, when my daughter calls me

on her way home from work in MO,

she toots her horn at the No Kings folks

who are rallying along her route.

This comes to mind as I read these words.

I am so grateful and inspired to know this 

is happening miles and miles away and 

in so many places across our country.

In big ways and small, people are resisting tyranny.

"It's the belief that what we do matters

even though how and when it may matter,

who and what it may impact, are not things

we can know beforehand.

So don't judge or compare your mattering!

Go about your particular business knowing

you are making an impact for the good.

 

The First Great Thing

"deliverance will not come from

the rushing noisy centers of civilization."

I had some questions around the word deliverance

when I considered sharing this quote.

It brought up some unsavory thoughts in my mind.

However, when I saw Miriam Webster's 

first definition was "liberation", I proceeded.

There are other associations I'm going to dismiss.

"It will come from the lonely places."

It's hard to admit I have lonely places.

Not solitude as in happily engaged with

my own adventures; which is where I'm drawn to,

but lonely as in forlorn, missing out, blue.

Is that where liberation comes from?

I know my appreciation for the medicine

I receive from going outside 

when feeling lonely, blue, confused, 

undecided and/or overwhelmed 

grows as the years stack up.

I’m thinking Mother Earth 

could be the best path to deliverance.

 

All That's Required Of You

"In the end, isn't this all that's required of you?

To drink in what you love,  to concentrate it

in the crucible of your body, 

and, finally, to bloom."

Drinking in what we love...

isn't this the easiest of occupations?

Drinking in the majesty of  

dandelions and mosses,

 earthworms and fungi,

 honeybees, ants and ladybugs,

slugs, spiders, and lichens...

contributing their often overlooked

elegance to our world.

I haven't even gotten to the flowers, trees,

rivers, mountains, ocean and sky yet.

And then there's outer space.

Isn't this intoxicating?

 

When Days Feel Heavy

"Joy that sits beside our sorrow and doesn't walk away."

This is the line that touched my heart and drew me in.

". . .not to erase grief, or answer every question,

but to hold us season after season."

When grief and sorrow take hold of me,

 my strongest inclination is to put as much distance

between us as possible.  To shout NO, NO, NO!

Now I'm asking myself what if I turned toward them?

What if instead of running away, I entered into their space and 

spent some time in their painful presence? 

I can hear the inner voices chiding me for "being negative".

I think I'll ignore them the next time they show up

and see what happens.  It's not negative to be human...fully human.

I realize there are many who are intimately familiar

with their painful, excruciating presence and have no choice

but to show up and live what is happening. 

I bend my knee to you and what you're going through.

Thank you for being here.

May joy find you, always.

 

The Air I Am Breathing

"The elements of the universe are engaged

in their ceremony of delight."

Isn't this delicious?  

"This is my religion."

It cannot be contained inside any building. 

It cannot be contained within a set of beliefs... 

a holy book, 

a closed heart,

or a made-up mind.

They can contribute but not contain...

They can participate but not complete.

 

Listen, I Want To Tell You Something

"I can't tell you what prayer is, but I can 

take the breath of the meadow

into my mouth and I can release it 

for the leaves' green need."

My favorite line, 

a poet's description of photosynthesis. 

in this exuberant cheer

for the countless contributions,

strewn throughout an ordinary day

in this amazing world we live in...

 

The Sun, The Ocean, The Moon, The Trees

Many gems in this tribute to some of Earth's everyday wonders

often taken for granted.  

The sun charging creativity and passion and keeping us warm, 

the ocean healing deeply and literally giving and sustaining life,

the moon reminding us to move with emotion and rhythm,

offering us calm and inspiration, and 

the trees grounding us, modeling patience and strength,

. . .and lessons in how to live rooted and steady.

These words offer me a chance to slow down and

absorb the magnificence of Earth's complexity,

generosity, and dependability. 

It continues to inspire me to do whatever 

I can to honor and protect her from harm.

 

Light Hole

I only know a little about dark holes...

what I do know keeps me at a distance.

Learning that "not even light is fast enough to escape its pull,"

gives a whole new flavor to things.

"Wouldn't it help to name the wide abyss in the center of your

heart a cauldron of brimming hope?

Reading these words and imagining my heart 

as a cauldron brimming with hope is an enchanting affair.

It makes me want to fling open 

the inner doors and windows

so this hope can permeate every vein, 

every artery. every inch

of inner soil.

"There can be no further collapse.

Only the steady evaporaton of a love so singular 

it ends in a flash, a final sung note

made by the immensity of what it carries."

This is so potent when I think of my life force,

with its steady evaporation...

 I find myself lost for words... 

stunned by amazement.

 

Standing Back

"Human or Frog?"

rrrbit rrrbit rrrbit.

No contest.

 

Limitless

This is like several tee shirts all in one place.

Oak and Ant and Silence are the ones I'm most drawn to.

"When the wind blows, bend easily and trust your roots to hold."

"Small does not mean powerless."

"In the quiet, everything comes clear."

 

You Drew The Line

"the weight of your own worth"

It's astronomical!

"Stand where you are.

Let it be heaven.

"Root down."

My favorite line.

"I can do epic things.

We all know the epic things

we can do and are doing.

We're in this together and

I'm glad you're here.

 

A Kiss

I am swept away with this.

So many delicious and 

delightful words and phrases.

 I love every sentence. 

May it bring you joy.

Thank you for being here.