September 27, 2014 The Sunday Whirl/That Deeper Place/ deVerse

That Deeper Place

Tussey-Mussey, pocket full of poseies

Ashes ashes we all fall down

Sticks and stones will break your bones

Love’s last breath will break your heart

Neruda says it begins with the ‘word’

But I think it begins in a deeper place

A place we imagine

Real or not...

A place where feelings begin

...fear...joy...sadness...

And love...

When we speak of the heart

I do not think we mean the organ

That beats in our chest

But instead that same place I am talking about

Where we can love selflessly

A place that houses ‘the heart and the soul’

The deepest part of our being

Where the dross is burned away

By the flames of love

From where feelings bubble up

To become the truth of who we are

Our identity...what is real

And you were real

You never changed who you were

In the beginning of your absence

I examined everything

And wondered...did I do all I could

Did you know how precious you were to me

And each time the answer came back

Like an echo

I loved you from that deepest place

My heart and my soul informed

My every deed and action

September 27, 2014

 Note:  I wrote this poem with my niece, Michele in mind.  It is her birthday, and about the same time my Son, Jim died, her Father, Charles died.  I am dedicating this poem to her.

August 20, 2014 The Sunday Whirl/A Life of Stone--Poetry Pantry

A Life of Stone

What is it to live

To be alive

Expression searching

Sailing oceans

In great sailing ships

Keeping time as we all grow old

And turn to stone

In the desert

Where the world is made of sand

There once was a great sea

One night when all were sleeping

The ocean dried to a lovely yellow

Leaving behind all the creatures

Over time they turned to stone

Their words captured with them

You can find them sleeping now

An old miner dressed as a pirate

With a peg leg

A patch over one eye

(A different eye each day

He could never remember)

Who had spent many years at sea

Crossed himself and told of a sea creature

He had found at the bottom of his mine

He had a heart of gold

And his words were true

He kept that sea creature made of stone

In his breast pocket

Near his heart

To remember for all times

Where he had been

Where he was going

...And you

August  20, 2014

Writer's Digest/Hold My Hand--deVerse/The Journey

Hold My Hand

And I’ll hold yours’

Why so tight my Son

I won’t leave you

I am here

In thoughts we race back

Years back

When you and I were young

So much to learn for both of us

We thought it would be easy

And it was for a while

I was the one who cared for you

You explored the world

Of the neighborhood

Played in the dappled light

Of the yard

Fished and swam

Grew strong

As a young man

Just like the little birds in Spring

Your time came

You left the safety of the nest

Tried your wings

It was as it should be

I would not stand in the way

Of your journey

You came back home

After many adventures

Some good and some not

I was proud of the man you had become

The Prodigal Son

I was waiting and took your hand

Now you are gone

As it was to be

Written long ago

You followed your path

My hand is empty

My heart doesn’t seem to beat

Yet I hold the memory of you there              

August 17, 2014

____________________________

The Journey

The journey began

Years ago

You came to us

Golden hair

Eyes of blue

You looked into mine

And I looked into yours’

We didn’t know

What this would mean

Your care

Became my life

My only child

My one big prayer

You opened my eyes to see

You were my teacher

Always on the move

With your little black dog

Your image

Filled my heart

Always glad when

You were around

To the young man

You were

I said goodbye

More than once

As a Mother must do

This final time

Was the hardest of course

To say goodbye for the last time

Completely broke my heart

Today I do not know

If I will live again

I walk the journey

In the valley of darkness

August 17, 2014

August 15, 2014 Poetry Pantry/ The Light Returns

The Light Returns

This year

Summer has been dark

And I have wondered if

The light would ever return

In the morning

A new day begins

Sure as the tides

Calling the waters out to sea

And returning them

To crash into foam

On this ancient sandy shore

The sun rises

Above Taos Mountain

Sacred Mother

Overlooking the valley

Home of the people

Heart of the Universe

Light of the World

Now is the moment

The light returns

It is the autumn of the year

August 15, 2014

Note:  In Autumn much is dying away, in preparation for Winter, and regeneration; there will be new grown in Spring.