Anything but..

If a poet’s work is hitched to spirit,
that wild master of any art,
the words spark image, yes,
but more important
they move through and
switch the tide,
bring a tear,
or release a laugh,
birth a pause,
clear thought,
crack the darkness,
or hold you close-
Anything but keep things the same.

Summons

Walk into the fire.
Be purified.
Become water~
Wave through endless ocean.
Root in earth.
That mineral darkness feeds and holds you.
Breathe sky..
Fuel your own laughter and song.
Embodiment summons-
Burn brightly-
Now is the chance to learn
to spend a lifetime
Rejoicing.

Notes of Silence

At dawn, in the field
where bustle and bombardment
arrest-
erased by the pace intended-
What penetrates fleets not
as creation arises,
replenishing, even through death,
in constant celebration,,
A music, in full possession
of the notes of silence,
always plays

What fills mind

Flameless fire in golden grass-
Morning touches brightly
what rests before her.
Bowing down,
forehead and hands to dirt,
the weightlessness of surrender.
A yard above,
Single-chant bird song
and short celebratory flights
between acacia and pine,
delight winged and non alike.
What fills mind
perfumes the sky.

Without your hand

How many pluck the thorn without the rose?
Dancers without smiling hearts,
Climbers ungrasping of height’s uplift,
Farmers possessed not by the soil-
Where are You?
Mystery awakens at the end of dream~
that sorrow and clamour are not
the real movement.
The orchestra of a day,
rising sun, opening flower, resting dog,
starlight-
This play of life delighting any who see
goes on without your hand, or asking,
and isn’t it miraculously so..
For any who stop and breathe and look
will find all the riches
are not only within,
but free.

Raptor

Laying this body down-
slumber denied, dream delayed-
she comes over me.

And I grow feathers.

From crown,
quills push through skin and
rush earthward..
flaring, fingering,
as ice crystals might broaden or scales overlap,
not resting upon but merging, rooting..
overcoming brow, eyelids now avian.
Beak descends, replacing nose.
Spreading downward,
feathering across shoulder
and ridge of limbs-
strong arm becomes stronger pinion.

Her penetrating vision. Her powered flight.
Protector and guide,
humility and respect give rise
to these wings.

Ravishing Journey

In the moment you stopped
and saw me,
I knew Spirit was there
galloping between blissful hearts and keen eyes.
Explanations, unnecessary,
the impact of presence and recognition
loud.
We’ve both learned to ride
the untameable mustang-
no cloth. no leather. no fear. between.
With fur and flesh and speed and wind,
muscle gripping muscle, fingers braided in mane,
bodies leaping..
the greatest lone expanse breaks open,
a beauty possessing and unfolding into One…
Few comprehend where we have been.
In honor of sharing this ravishing journey,
thank you.

The next time

My slipping my hand into yours
may be the slyest action I take
before daybreak..
Dream being such effortless invitation.
Where were you
when stars draped the blue black sky
and outlined pine crowns pressed the horizon?
My breath need not search yours,
the balance of inhale
and release
requests no reminders.
The next time I catch your lips behind my ear,
I’ll be listening to your invisible passing
with more than a smile.

All the Time We Have

In your arms,
the quaking of heart stops,
breath finds its river flow,
rolling belly stills in surrender,
and muscles tensed for action,
tired from constant readiness, dissolve
in ambient warmth.
In this shelter,
the ticking clock no longer sounds,
its meaning lost, forgotten.
Morning birdsong becomes
the vertical light becomes
the first star of black opening night.
Let us linger here forever…
Thankfully, Beloved,
that’s all the time we have.

Within Reach

Lift your palm,
kiss the center,
She waits there to kiss you back.
In your heart, She drums-
your pulse, Her rhythm.
The vision through your blinking eyes
of widest sky and massive cloud play,
that is She
gazing upon Herself..
Originating in you, or from the heavens- which?
Remember, One can not be outside itself.
She sustains, effortlessly
within reach-
You awaken
and Her breath is yours.