My Voice Dwells Within Silence

 I hope to find my voice hidden beneath the staunch silence 

almost always drowned out by persistent chatter and distraction 

even in these quiet days.  

I will add strength training to my will-power, 

starch to my determination, 

patience to my practice, 

and courage to my spine.

I must remember to wrap 

a blanket of tenderness 

across my shoulders

for every awkward attempt.  

kastilwell

Deserves To Be Heard

 I am finding myself re-enthralled with TTW's "When Women Were Birds".  

However, a question arises as I contemplate this quote.

What if the voice is spewing lies and hatred?

Does it still require the act of listening?

I'm not so sure about this.  

Continuing to ponder.  

kastilwell

Voices Within Us Begin

 

 I've heard the first voice we heard was our grandmother's 

since the egg we are created from is present in the womb of our mother 

while she is in her own mother's womb.  

This egg is present five months prior to our mother's birth.  

I find this a mighty "fertile" thought!  

This quote is from a book titled 

When Women Were Birds; Fifty Four Variations on Voice by TTW.  

As my mother's life on earth winds down, 

and her voice dissolves into memory loss and confusion, 

I treasure the idea that her strong, clear voice still lives in my cells. 

I have no conscious memory of my maternal grandmother 

but I've heard enough about her to know 

I am fortunate to have her voice 

reverberating within me as well.  

kastilwell

Notes:  Want to calculate the vintage of the egg you came from?  Take your mother’s date of birth and subtract about 20 weeks.That’s true because unlike males, who constantly generate sperm after they hit puberty, girls are born with their one and only lifetime supply of eggs.  Around the 20th week of gestation, a female fetus has developed a reproductive system, including 6 to 7 million eggs in her ovaries.The matrilineal line looks much like a nested Russian doll.The egg that created you was formed inside of your mother’s fetus while she was inside of your grandmother’s womb.  

Strongest Kind of Hope

I would not call this kind of hope sad.  

Might it be that spiraling back into yourself is the preferred way?

Might it take us to the most intimate and unique pieces of ourselves?

I believe our gift to this world lives there.

Walking a different path yesterday 

helped me realize that my life's path is a spiral 

rather than a straight road...

it goes out and circles back in a 

mysterious cycle of darkness and light,  

growth and hope.

kastilwell

 

Empty Spaces

 I don't know about courage

but I do know about empty spaces.

It's a new way of thinking to 

acquaint the often painful empty places

with courage.

kastilwell

It's Worth It

 After a night in the throes of wakeful discomfort,

it's good to be reminded "it's all worth it".

Even when feeling decidedly distant from worthy.

Dwelling on how impermanent everything is

helps in bearing the momentary lack of bliss.

It helps to put it in perspective. 

Letting go of the debris of what has passed.

Embracing the "full draft" of what is 

in whatever vehicle it presents itself.

kastilwell

The Earth Calls Us

 Having an administration treat our Earth

with the attention and action so necessary

and so long overdue is heartening.

May we all do our part to rectify

our past mistakes in attending to her.

May we collaborate in restoring her to health.

Hope is a vital energy.

kastilwell