Subtlety

Quietly

Quietly, I sit and listen to the world.
Outside my open windows, many sounds
Bounce and flow. As I feel the slight breeze,
I hear the sounds of nature, and a waking world
of building activity.

There is the cry of a crow; he begs for the
Attention of all who will listen. Many crickets
Play their coordinated, yet random refrains.
Synchronicity of the great symphony.

A car drives by. And then another. Sounds
of humanity’s creation mixing with the songbirds.
Sparrow sings his sweetest song. And another.
The closer I listen, the quieter I become; the stiller
I sit, the more sounds I hear. They are separate
and distinct. Yet, they all somehow match and
feel just right together.

In stillness - in the quiet…
The world sings…
To the real self…
The song of this moment is divine.

Remembering

There was a time
Not so very long ago
When he was happy
And life was kind

There was a time
When love was new
He remembers it fondly
He longs for his return

There was a time
When he healed the sick
He lived with purpose
Led others to peace

There was a time
Not so very long ago
When he was aware
Of Love’s flowing perfection

He chokes back another tear
Breathes in, breathes out
Begs God for mercy
And pulls the trigger

Her Stories

No one thinks a thing about it

If you were to look into her eyes
You would see
Her compassion

If you were to stop and listen
She would recite for you
A new song

If you were to offer her a meal
She would offer
To share her story

But her story is fading
She has not retold it
In too many seasons

Passersby
Occasionally, risk a glance
Rarely, offer a word of kindness

As she pushes her shopping cart
Filled with her stories
Down the darkened alley

Summer’s Beginning

It’s early on a
day of vacation
    Mid-morning in the
rest of the world
    Numbers steadily
increasing
    Walking on the
boardwalk

    Behind me
the waves arrive
    Nourishing and
nourished on the sandy beach
    Summer’s beginning
sun, sand, surf
    vacationers, walkers, joggers

    It’s early on this
day of vacation
     It’s early on the
boardwalk

Serenity’s Song

A calming moment
Sitting on a concrete bench
The stillness broken only
By the songs of the birds in the trees overhead

A place of great peace
Flowing from this willing heart
Forever beginning
In this instant of time

The birds’ songs continue
As the beauty invades
Pervasively rippling
Serenity’s quiet song

Asleep Again

As the crows bespoke their kindred song
Kindled hearts of forty-four lost crickets sang along
In merriment and twists of ubiquitous beginnings
The lass looked with awe at an expansive blue sky

Urging summer winds blew inexplicably cold
As gazelles and rhinoceroses grew increasingly old
Implacable mysteries of the darkest child
Tender and quite mild, yet rabidly wild

They looked with great awe at the gift in the crib
Loving mother and proud father of a perfect creature
Awake and then asleep again, encouraging their awe
Irrespectively irrelevant world still surrounds

A simple and humble sight to any happening by
Yet, brilliant and inspiring to the parents above
Warm in her blankets, closing her second eye
Asleep again, they shared a grateful sigh

Coffee

Momentary glances
At too many faces
Regretting lost chances
Drinking coffee alone

Imaginary dances
Love yet replaces
Present circumstances
Drinking coffee alone

Momentary glances
Hope briefly erases
Two minds' advances
Drinking coffee alone

Lifted

In the awkward moments
Of the silence following each conflict
The battlers’ cry
Is lifted

In the pleasing moments
Of the recognition of the depths of another
The eagle’s flight
Is lifted

In the burgeoning moments
Shared by new parents in joy
The hopeful infant
Is lifted

In the passing time
Of a life lived in search of fullness
The recognition of self
Is lifted