Amidst the steady fall of leaves,
a small squirrel
hurries by, holding
a gum ball in
his teeth. High flying crows streak past,
intent on a
focus all their
own. Then, from my
vantage point, no leaves fall, no crows
or squirrels rush by :
a Sabbath moment,
a sacred pause.
JDG
How many precious moments we
waste resenting
rain, demanding
sun when rain is
what has come our way. The great Duke
Ellington played
things a very
different way.
“I merely took the energy
it takes to pout,”
he said, “and wrote
some blues instead.”
JDG
I give thanks for the day after
Thanksgiving Day
when the cooking’s
done, the feast’s been
held and there’s nothing much to do.
Left-overs will
feed the hungry
crew with little
effort from me. It’s then I can
finally settle
in with book, pen,
and cup of tea.
JDG
Her final word to me was “love”,
said as if she
were just naming
what was there – much
as a child, learning to talk,
sorts and names what
occupies her
world. She, though, was
looking through all separate forms
straight to the heart
of all that is,
was, and will be.
JDG
( In celebration of the life of Ruth Farrall )
On this calm day with little breeze,
some leaves let go
and float, twirling
to the waiting
ground. I wonder how they know just
when to leave one
home and journey
to another?
Some rest awhile in the outstretched
arms of nearby
evergreens,
then travel on.
JDG
Today I made a little leap
backward toward
the moment when
I always leap
forward instead. Circling back
in this kind of
u-turn gives me
the chance I need
to pause and reflect if I want
to move forward
at all. Next time
I’ll try to look
before I leap.
JDG
It’s the little things that trip me
up and little
things that catch me
when I start to
fall. Nothing big – just a certain
shrillness – can set
me off, but then
the swoop of hawk,
the call of dove can set me right
again. It’s not
only to know, “This
too shall pass.” It’s
learning to accept what’s here
and say, “This too.”
JDG
I want to pause when what’s become
second nature
takes center stage,
turning rejected
moments into high drama with
second nature
in the starring
role. I want to
make room for my original
nature to make
its come-back, long
awaited and
much hoped for.
JDG
A deep red blanket, pulled across
the evening sky,
brings warm comfort
to the close of
day as the crescent moon looks on,
ready to take
its rightful place
in night’s darkening
sky. A slow settling begins
as tuckered out
creatures sigh and
start to snuggle in.
JDG
When different elements meet,
each can become
more than they were
before. Just this
morning, on frosty ground, light met
water, fire
met ice, and this
alchemical
greeting led to sparks that lit up
an otherwise
cold and barren
separateness.
JDG
