Wish I could converse –
one harmonic voice blended
in a symphony of birdsong –
but my tongue stumbles
reveals me as interloper
As much as I tread
softly over forest floor
my missteps crackle
alert the denizens
danger is about –
no imploring
can reverse the impression
Nature’s sensitivity is finely tuned
and I am urban-scented,
barely tolerated,
seldom trusted –
must bear my reverence
for this sacred space
more deliberately.
(Image my own)
The wind subsided
momentarily
and the river stood still
and I caught your reflection
memories flooding back
When days were warm
and innocence nurtured imagination
and you held me in your arms –
a creature no different than
the squirrels and birds
who shared a branch
I loved you like a mother –
your steadfastness
the drapery of your foliage –
hiding made sublime
Oh, how my heart swelled
recalling the simplicity –
how easy it was to believe
that trees had spirits
and the wind could talk
and the stillness of the day
To climb, to ascend,
to know that sacred ladder
that lifted me high above
The moment passed
the water rippled
but the inspiration remains
Your roots hold the promise
dear Willow, I am sure –
thank you for the reflection
(Art my own)
In silken Autumn skies
looming clouds allure
Amid the constant flux
I am craving solitude
Stay alert! Sky warns
Change is coming!
Autumn’s undeniable beauty
will succumb to Winter
Quiet days will return –
a reassurance I savour.
(Image my own)
Exposed are we,
voyageurs crossing
this great expanse-
One tiny vessel
bearing life’s weight,
two oars to navigate
Unknown depths below
and shadows murky –
we push on. Row. Row.
Sights set on new land
uncharted possibilities –
pray the crossing favours us
Then a shape emerges –
great hulking mass –
parting waters,
rising and transforming
Is this a caricature of our fear?
I am mesmerized,
project a divine presence
look for mystical signs
He shrugs,
pragmatically notes that
the St Lawrence is home
to such mammals
I dream of whales,
crave communion –
yearn for their certainty
their knowing
Just as I wait for a sign
from the departed –
inviting a simpler life,
inspiring hope…
A shore life,
from which I can observe
the numinous.
(Image my own. This is a rewrite of an earlier post)
To stroll amongst giants –
straight-backed arrows
whose green bows aim skyward,
a directional pull so uplifting
that earthly matters diminish –
this is contentment.
(Image my own.)
Oh that Spring gale,
she’s such a storyteller –
awakens the land
fiddles with expectations –
Welcome post-Winter trickster.
(Image my own)
There, beyond the fence lines
amid the birch and firs
I find my breath
Does graze, and fawns skip
as if they are children
chasing butterflies
An abundance of harmony,
ego leads me to believe,
but it is only denial
The bulldozer snorts
and rumbles into view,
deer and I lifting heads
Tails raised, the four-legged scatter,
hide themselves within the brush –
Is such shelter adequate? I wonder
Human demand eroding the green –
We talk about living minimally –
fail to consider God’s creatures
Whose very existence shrinks
within the confines
of expanding fences.
(Image my own)
Against Winter’s pull
pines stand strong; ice drums on roof –
rhythmic ovation
Soon, Winter will seal decay
beneath snowy banks
and we’ll plant ourselves
hearth side, aiming for fortitude
I shall middle myself amid
books and paints, soldier
through the desolation,
mourn for Summer’s loss.
(Image my own)
One Woman's Quest 