Tag: poetry

the Light

the Light chases us
even through
a dense darkness
a disorienting mist
that surrounds our efforts
to run towards anything
that helps us
to feel
loved
to feel
free

the Light waits for us
as we meander and stumble
through grief and sorrow
like a thick forest of tears
you cut your way through
angry branches
and leaves of sadness
but the forest
closes in
and muffles your weeping

the Light sees us
even when we can’t breath
and anxiety transforms the world
into a tiny box
from which
we cannot escape
and what we want
more than anything
is to be able
to stretch out our hand
so someone
can take hold
and guide us home

above
beneath
behind
in front of every cry
the Light

above
beneath
behind
in front of all your sorrow
the Light

above
beneath
behind
in front of all your fear
the Light

above
beneath
behind
in front of you
the Light
a hand extended
to guide you home
a warm embrace
to welcome you home

prelude to the winter snow

october you’re just teasing
but thank you
for those summer like breezes
i like your style
i love what I see
it’s just a little while
and then what’s to come
will be
you blaze and shine
with colors sublime
it’s a bittersweet show
but I don’t mind
this vivid prelude
to the winter snow
but until the chill
descends on hoodies
and we have to wear
pajamas with footies
i’ll sing with you
let you color my world
you always
fall with such grace
and suddenly
our crazy world
is a beautiful place

a day gone by

oh don’t mind me
i’m just waiting
for the end of the day
anticipating
not that i want to rush
to say goodbye
but i must
so here it is
a day gone by
forgive me
for the the unfinished things
and all that i did too
loud words unspoken
all that i said
i just want to rest
for a moment
inside this sunset
just for a moment
in beauty
wonder
and dazzling sorrow
so
don’t mind me
i’m just hanging on
the push and pull
i don’t want to miss
the painter’s sky
yet a part of me
just wants to cry
for the gifts i hold
and all i lost
so here it is
a day gone by
funny how the history
of a single day
can end so beautifully
oh to fly like the birds
soar and celebrate
no i’ll just quietly
let the colors paint
my soul
and 
say
good…
…bye

jewels in my soul

and there were threads in the garden
and there were stars in the leaves
and there jewels on the flowers
and there were diamonds in the webs
and there were threads in my mind
tethered to sorrow
beauty
lament
wonder
love
and there were stars in my heart
sparkling memories
regrets
dreams
loss
hope
and there were jewels in my soul
brilliantly reflecting
the promises
of my heavenly Papa
the redemption
of the Lamb
the deliverance
from the shadows
of my brokenness
and there were diamonds
all around
family
friends
love
companionship
a smile
an encouraging word
gratitude
melodies
light
beauty
song

summer’s passage

i wonder where summer is going
and why the hostas’ trumpets
wither in the song of the morning gold
the moisture saturated early september air
will soon surrender to hoodie worthy chilly days
and hosta trumpets will disappear
and silenced shrills that once inhabited
golden shells gently rest
bearing witness to the symphonies
that played endlessly on measureless summer days
but now summer’s bags are packed
the trees wait and will soon honor summer’s passage
tossing golden and crimson leaves
in a reluctant celebration
to the closing of summer nights and songs
and to welcome the crystal air of winter’s refining lament

it’s enough to just be you

take a breath and close your eyes
i’m praying that you’ll realize
that it’s enough to just be you
it will take time 
but i know you will shine
so ease your mind and take my hand
i will help you stand and stay with you
i will listen to every word you say
i promise it will be okay
sometimes everything is gray
so that we can grow
into what we were made to be
and i know you will shine
it will take time
but you will realize
that it’s enough
to just
be you

beneath a blanket of blue

i
lift
up
my eyes
to the
fields
and skies
and
let
this
fleeting
day
pass
away
another
moment
a shifting
hue
in an
instant
a crimson
glow
grows
beneath
a blanket
of
blue
this
choir
of
colors
quietly
slowly
lends
gentle
tones
to
feathered
clouds
above
time
softly
closes
the
door
as
i
whisper
prayers
of
awe
reverence
and
gratitude

connection

standing still
contemplating all
the strategic decisions
that brought me here
ready to take a new step
on the journey
navigating
this ocean of feelings
the sadness
just beneath
the surface of it all
how do we traverse
the relational mines
of this broken world
no more pretending
more unmasking
what lies beneath
the smiles
and the tears
so tired of defending
time to stop protecting
and submit to truth
to words that may hurt
but will heal
the path to connection
spend more time in reflection
admitting all that’s wrong
in me
it’s so easy to live
suppressing
love and heartache
stepping into releasing
it all to Him
embracing the journey inward
not hiding what others see
accepting all that is
turning away
from denying all that is
the fog of reality
is clearer
that the seemingly
serene shimmer of self-deception
the crying
is from the lying
vulnerability is moving
towards being free
intimacy or distancing
the choice is up to me
to live in authenticity
and humility
is to break through
the veneer of safety
and i’m certain
that certainty
is not so certain after all
faith requires
the tension
of a solid hope
amidst the crazy
of the now
hate and
willful ignorance
are easy
it’s love
that is
hard

Kyrie eleison
Christe eleison

the in between

still on the journey
through achromatic beauty
everything is okay
no
really
it is
well
sort of
i can’t make sense of a anything
everything will be okay
at least i hope it will
but there is the now
the inbetween
the stumbling
not quite sure
which way to turn
i recognize
this strange
space of uncertainty
and stillness
and i cry
fast forwarding
isn’t fun
i cry
feels like
a lonely drowning
i cry
a jumbled pile
of grief and loss
wading through
shattered hope
and i cry
God
help me to accept
the immovable
reality of now
and rest
inhale
exhale
rest
i
cry

all the goodbyes

a fleeting embrace
ending
with one last glance
one last wave
as you step
through security
with no one to help you
with your insecurity
ushered into
a waiting room
after transferring a kiss
from you hand
to her forehead
overwhelming outcomes
swirl in your mind
a quiet prayer
folded hands
shoulders
crushed beneath
sorrow and pain
rest
gently rest
i’ll see you
again
a collection
of expectations
neatly organized
as you donate them
to the upside down reality
that is also your lament

younger days
when smiles
were abundant
surrender to
deep steel eyes
aged by the weight
of all that you must release
all that you thought
was the melody of your journey
memories
that just fade
and others
that won’t go away
songs that remain
falling into the echoes
of time and reminiscence
of sad joy
and mournful gratitude
sunsets loudly
dazzle your soul
swallowed by night
colors overtaken
by unstoppable darkness
still
i welcome
every hello
every greeting
every start
every beginning
every hope
every hug
every grace
every possibility
every giggle
every sunset
every sunrise
while holding
all the goodbyes
and i’m glad
so
immeasurably
glad

i
am
with
you