Ancient words from far
away speak to me today:
“The best time to plant
a tree is twenty years ago.
The second best time is now.”
JDG
Self Authoring
When I’m in between chapters
and the plot of my life falters,
I can only do what I’ve always done –
take one step, then another,
watch for what develops,
pick up the plot, and go on from there.
JDG
As The Day Ends
The busy ways of
wasps and bees and hummingbirds
create quite a stir
this lazy, sun-soaked evening.
I sigh, pleased my chores are done.
JDG
Turning Again To Martin Luther King Jr.
As we struggle with feelings of anger and despair over the deadly abuse of power in Louisiana and Minnesota, and the retaliatory gun violence in Texas may we reaffirm Martin Luther King Jr.’s belief spoken in Oslo in 1964 upon his acceptance of the Nobel Peace Prize: “I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant.”
May we support those committed to translating this belief into action and may our own behavior be guided by the understanding that “nonviolence is not sterile passivity but a powerful moral force which makes for social transformation…[and that we] must evolve for all human conflict a method which rejects revenge, aggression, and retaliation.”
JDG
Summer Blues
Sweltering heat or
gloomy rain and thunderstorms –
Is this all there is?
JDG
Years, Days, Moments
For years
they had grown together,
those three tall pines.
They stood firm
as land was cleared,
a road built, a house raised.
Soon, on planted grass,
kids ran, dogs barked, deer roamed.
In the big wind a single tree fell –
one day standing,
the next day gone –
two brothers left
to carry on.
JDG
Small Indulgences
Small indulgences –
a nap in the afternoon,
a glass of wine as
the sun sets, a long hot bath,
a rose sachet – large returns.
JDG
Perhaps
If I interrupt the story
and simply sit,
noting what comes, what goes,
what lingers on,
perhaps
I’ll find a silent treasure
in this boundless place,
emptied of unneeded words.
JDG
It’s Just Us
Not one of those leaves
declares its independence
from the tree, nor does
the tree announce itself
free and independent
of ground or sky
or whim of weather.
Without thought, they claim
their place – one part
of an interactive whole.
It’s just us unwisely named
homo sapiens who deny
what the leaves and tree
already know.
JDG
At Fifteen, A New Song
After years of singing
the sore foot blues,
she finally found
the perfect pair of shoes.
Now, as she prepares
to take a hike,
she’s singing
a very different tune.
Her lilting voice joyfully proclaims
” These shoes were meant for walking!”
JDG
