Gulls

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Seagulls soar high above the flapping sound of wind. They fly bright-white through sunlight wedged beneath dark clouds that are heavily shaded by taller cloud brothers enjoying the cleansing feel of sunlight in their wispy wet hair. The seagulls play in the strong wind like unstrung kites in a gusty breeze – they bounce and jive and soar off beyond ground-vision. What really catches my eye is the brightness of the seagull’s feathers beneath the slate colored clouds that seem to save their rain-drops for a storm. There aren’t that many gulls - 2 or 3 but they own that space in the sky. Their soaring must be more freeing to them than the scheduled food that is offered below at the residence for the aging. They often beg for food at that place, standing on the ridge of its roof but right now they are flying free from the earth’s pull, forever in this moment and needing nothing

Robin

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I have been sleeping all night long
In a wonderful comfortable bed
But now the robin wakes me
Knowing that the sun will rise
Robin opens herself to the miracle of song
I wonder what she hears when she sings
For me lying down with the window open
I hear God flowing through her willing body
And then back into the morning dew
Again and again and again she calls
The singular beauty of that morning song
Draws me out from this aging body
And fills me with wonder and joy
As I glimpse the infinite expanse of a world
That my mind doesn’t need to understand
I lie alone opening my heart to everything

Springtime

 

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This is not my place alone
But I love to walk here
With my dog Chester
We grow old together
And walk more slowly
Now than we did before
But I see more than before

Snakes in the sun
Gathering warmth
Plum trees in flower
Scenting a cool breeze
With the intoxicating
Richness of plump
Pink blossoms

Green grass now growing
Over an edge of path
Bluebells, daises
Dandelions flower
Around mud pressed
Springtime footprints
Left by dogs and owners

Pieris' red leaves
Are distinctive now
But they too, will change
With summers more serious
Mood of green growth
As black bees buzz
About my head

There simply is too much
To notice everything
But spring calls
Into every hollow
Urging everything on
And holding nothing back

Spring maestro
Lives in each heart
Of every living thing
Playing each of us
With beauty

Clouds

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We are living under the clouds
Entering them the world is lost
The map we follow is inside us
And beyond those misty clouds
  Is a blue sky brightened by sun

Anxiety

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Stomachs don’t digest anxiety
So anxiousness wrestles
Nervous in my stomach
Pushing at its walls
Avoiding the dark secret of gut
And its dark, twisting pathways
Anxiety can’t stand alone
It is the shadow of fear

Weather

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Some days made forgotten days good
Others made dull days bright as new wood
As our life sailed forever on oceans blind
We only experienced the weather we'd find
Whether calm and mild or dark in a storm
Every day was different - each day reborn
Its importance was noted on pages of soul
Watching a truth unveil paths and our role
Toward the narrow point of a longing bowl

Blindside

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I never even saw it coming
Maybe I forgot why I am here
Like so many others forget
But it sat me up awake
Losing what was lent to me
To use and share for a lifetime
The gift I chose for all

Really, what I took for granted was life
The most precious and unlikely thing
We could ever encounter in any eternity
Life is a gift that lives beyond all dreams
A foundation for the universe that we see
The best teacher of compassion and peace
It survives the sleep that dissolves our past

Life forgives everything
Except what we carry
In our precious way
Until we change forever
Embracing deeper beliefs
That wait beside our stream
Patient beyond our lifetime

Sunny Periods

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There are clouds everywhere in the sky
All different colors, different sizes, different shapes
I haven’t got a clue what direction they are going in
All I notice is that the sun feels very warm in my car
But it feels too cool when we sit in the shade with the engine turned off
It seems bright and hot and then shady and cool every minute or so
The car windows are going up and down in unison as we crank them
Tulips and daffodils laugh with color but hide in the silence of their buds
There is a stillness in the spring-time gardens as we drive the highway
I enjoy the weather’s demand to be noticed today and the gardens too
It is not that much work to roll the window up and down
The dog is sleeping and my son is sitting beside me
Talking about the hot girls that he met yesterday
As our windows roll up and down together

A Feeling

 

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I don’t know whether to call you by your name
Or maybe I should just speak straight into God
Were you trying to teach me that love does not exist
Or were you afraid to feel it burning inside of your soul
The situation does not matter;  I know it is real - I felt it
Far inside so I know love is there and it will be there forever
In a part of me that won’t be forced but always seeks to grow
To find a way and a place to be infinite and beyond all edges
Beyond hope, beyond truth, beyond reason, beyond every thing
Love always makes its own rules with compassion for all
Not always with softness and never with pity or spite
Simply what is right and good for all is the best thing for me
Courage is necessary even when it doesn’t seem hard
And felt Love will always be real

Testing

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I found a rock to toss
It was perfect for testing the mud and the water
The goop that lay ahead
How deep and how soft
How mucky their clutch

I found a stick to probe with
It was perfect for testing the water and the mud
The goop that lay ahead
How deep and how soft
How mucky their clutch

I took a step
And felt the cold water and slid into the mud
Feeling violated again
By this world that looks easy
But bites hard when tested

Then I felt the world’s embrace
From the mother of us all