Shrivel
Quietly wilting
edges ruffled
rumpled.
The petals
still fragrant
but fading
still beautiful
but tattered
just along
curled in edges
as beauty
slowly fades.
I will not allow what happened to cause the new petals of my emotional growth to whither and wilt. These delicate edges of floral petals that are the growth of my emotional healthy and well-being are not allowed to be tattered. Not by her. I will not allow this newest affront to cause me to backslide.
Nature is…
Kind and loving
Harsh and cruel
She nurtures
She punishes
She embraces
She grieves
Nature feeds the snake
the precious eggs of the unwary
And stands guard
over the helpless
as they nap in the grass
The vastness of nature and the myriad of its facets is breathtaking and awe inspiring. It encompasses not just the earth or the trees that I connect to so strongly, not just the oceans and rivers and seas, not just the sky and clouds. She is not merely the sunsets and sunrises, not merely the storms and quakes.
She is all of these things. She is vicious and she is sweet, beautiful and horrible. Nor is she only a “she”… or a “he”.
Nature is vast… immeasurable… and ineffable.
Everything… and so much more.
Buttercups…
are like delicate
dollops of sunlight
bobbing in the breeze.
They greet you
with a sunny smile
alongside paths
among the trees.
Buttercups remind me of childhood and walks to and from the bus stop. In the spring and summer months, they were always there along the side of the road, greeting us not with the brash enthusiasm of the dandelions or the muted hello of blackberry blossoms, but with a cheery bright smile and delicate reach.
They still greet me in the same way now that I’m grown and encounter them more often along forest trails than in overgrown ditches, and still lighten and brighten my soul even on the darkest of days.
Spirituality…
Creation
Evolution
Balance
These are the energies
I revere in my practice
and connect to
most strongly
upon my path.
These energies are never more evident than in the rainforests I am most at home within, where life abounds in so many ways, blending with death and a dance of balance and creation.
Every time I visit the forests, I am filled not just with a sense of respect and reverence, but with abject wonder at my surroundings and the constant give and take that balance requires that can be seen and felt in every leaf, root, soil, insect, and creature.
This is my home. My soul’s breath. My spirituality.
The Forest…
She reclaims as she heals
Taking back all that has fallen
And all that has been lost.
Nothing is wasted
For even the wounds
Can be returned to the earth
As she heals,
And new growth flourishes.
I’ve been thinking a lot today about the month’s end reading I did a couple of days ago. The forest isn’t the only one that recycles things… people do too. My father’s influences and expectations carry on even after he has passed, whispering through my mind and, in some cases, making me who I am today… and tomorrow.
The key is to find a balance between those whispers and what I want for myself.
Pansies are…
Precious and sweet,
Simple and silly.
They are my favorite flower.
They are also edible!
I plant pansies on my balcony every year
in celebration of the arrival of spring.
They usually last until late October…
Sometimes even into November.
Twisting the Leaf 