Our Blessing of our Older Ones

Speaking with you is like a warm summer breeze
When you find just that sunny spot and can lean back with ease
I listen to your stories, full of wisdom acquired through experience
and each time you lean in close to whisper, I too lean forward to catch the lesson

It’s like the leaves are rustling through the trees
and your hands have lines like the ridges on bark
and your knuckles like roots coming up from the earth
and your hair like snow banks without a sound

ok

ok ok ok ok

ok ok ok ok ok 

ok ok ok 

ok ok 

make-believe

i was silly 

a bit like a child 

hoping for flowers 

and a sky with lilac clouds 

what a little girl it was 

that smiled for days 

holding on to all sorts 

of wondrous things 

hope again

sunshine in winter 

and after the rain

a rainbow marks the sky 

and a flower’s petals open again 

when darkness rolls in 

and the storm clouds gather 

this is the moment to remind yourself 

it will soon get better 

sometimes a girl can

don’t you know 

a girl can get tired 

and she’ll empty herself 

and smile when she needs to 

and go inside a room 

and cry her eyes out over you 

she’s just looking for a place 

that’s safe enough to trust 

friends who mean what they say 

that hold loyalty close to their chest 

delicate

bringing light to the darkness 

and developing awareness and understanding 

is something i will wrestle with 

and i know it 

and i’ll fight for it

because at the end of each battle 

i know that being kind is what i want to be 

that loving everyone is who i am 

and speaking from the heart is what i do 

even when it hurts me

even when it hurts 

teacher

I must be the filler

is that what it is?

fill in the blank spaces

when a person is lacking and down

but isn't it what we are

for one another during tough times

lift one another when we are sad

and when others are not around?

how to find the balance

how to keep some self-respect

how to not let them come in

and take all that I have left

fatigue

somewhere exists 

where i will find peace 

and for once in my life 

i’ll feel whole and complete 

without need 

for anyone other 

than me 

damaged

what did someone ever do to you 

to put that fear in your eyes,

and coldness in your heart?

who could ever compete with that?

forged in fire

life will test your patience 

how much longer can you wait?

it will refine you by degrees 

how much more can you take? 

and just when it seems you can’t 

suddenly you have a little more space 

for all that you thought you could not do 

and none of it goes to waste 

junco

sweet little snowbird 

panda of the sparrow family 

with dark along her back, 

and a white round belly 

your day

perhaps the day held chaos

and it all seemed to want to close in

and you locked in to get things done

and now you just want to rest

review this day and find in it

all the glimmers that shined for you

and how they reminded you of the ways

you have been abundantly blessed

mean something

i want it to mean something 

and i think i can trust it will 

when i’m no longer second-guessing 

when it doesn’t feel so frail 

wearing reassurance tightly tied

around me like a belt 

and confidence seeping through my veins 

replacing any shame i felt 

sisterhood

ah the women 

they will come and gather around you 

when you hurt inside and out 

they will look you in the eyes 

and tell you that you are okay

that you are not without 

demolition

i am not made 

for forgotten memories 

or old stories you remember with fondness 

i am made of all 

the present adventures 

and belly laughs of hidden jokes 

figuring things out

when you are ready to stop pretending 

everything is okay 

i’m here 

when you are ready to say you’re scared 

of things you don’t know 

i’ll listen 

when you are ready to speak the words on your heart 

in all their vulnerability 

that is what i’m made for 

and when you choose something other than what you’ve always done

i’ll know 

bestie material

you feel like bestie material 

so i’m going to tell you a story 

about how the struggle was real 

but nothing could hold down your girl

and i’m going to give you a high five 

because life is doing you a number 

and I know what that’s like 

and we need to know we matter 

the weathering

the tides rolled in 
and carried you out 
until the color of the sea
ran dark and deep 

you anchored your soul
and bent strong into each row 
and the winds kept raging 
determined for you to sink 

worth it

it’s hands holding 

arms hugging 

faces smiling 

and hearts loving 

it’s shoulders touching 

words praising 

in spaces reassuring 

and memories worth keeping

goodnight love

open the window for a few 

to listen to a twilight tune 

the cicadas perform this evening 

 and the concert is just for you 

the whip-poor-will calls out 

with its steady trill 

and the night is alive 

and yet comfortingly still 

grounding

i open my hand 

and in my palm

lie blooms with the slightest fragrance 

of honeysuckle and jasmine 

my laugh calls upon the forests

and the wind rises 

its humor meeting me 

in delight 

trust

He does not let me go

even when I’m ready 

Even when I beg for it 

He still tries to show me 

Life is worth sticking around for 

that there is more to it than simple love 

there are grander things at play 

and I am precious in being here 

goodbye girl

how long does it take 

for you to forget 

that look i gave 

that thing we said?

how long until 

you won’t remember 

that shared joke 

or that book we read?

little one

a wonderful world awaits you 

in that distant beautiful future time 

and i’ll meet you some sweet moment 

on that brilliant journey of the other side 

- les’nspired 

safety line

the silk thread 

of the tiniest silkworm

is a sure safety line 

to catch his fall 

he hangs upon my finger

and i marvel a bit

why must this creature 

be saved at all? 

the silence

we talked and as it came to a pause

we regarded one another 

a silence reigned 

it thickened in the air around us 

I felt underwater 

and everything stilled 

stay strong

my friend who is hurting 

i pray for your peace 

that my Father listens to your cries

and your heartfelt pleas

he knows you so very well 

and he loves you with loyalty 

and all the breaking around you now 

is all just temporary 

the light

when darkness came 

she chased the light 

and chased the light 

and chased the light 

it lead her to the dead end 

of a narrow street

covered by oak trees 

there she found a field 

of wild flowers opening up 

to a meadow, lush and green