"a simple nest…"

 she built
a simple nest
for her dreams
out of memories - some
held dear, and some not so

from the flotsam
and jetsam of an almost childhood,
the sparkle
and rust
and bits of wisdom
clutched for a while in tiny hands
and an untouched mind
before left
strewn in the wake
of another move
another town

but also from
the small scraps
of pale blue ribbon,
the poetry written on napkins,
the forever kind of love
of motherhood, and
girls on horses
that filled her heart
with hope...

"behind cornflower eyes.."

 
she
was such a little thing.

all sharp elbows,
pale hair, and cornflower eyes

her smile was open and fearless,
her look direct and trusting

I search for answers, and
she stares back at me from beyond
the deckled edges
of an old photograph,

and I begin to remember
how it felt to be her...

"the song of the Wind…"

 to hear
the song of the Wind,
you must
be still,
bid all mental chatter
cease,
and let the mechanism of modernity
be hushed

then,
trees become cellos,
the lake an oboe,
the dry winter grass
a section of strings,
our house a harp,

and the Wind -
a many-fingered Artist
calls forth
Her symphony
from nature's waiting instruments

while the sheets
and pillowslips dance
along a chorus line
of twine
strung
between two hearts...



[photoart by Jaime Heiden Photography]

"the girl who ran away…"

 this
was the river
that taught me
to cast my line
further
than I could see,

this
was the town
where girlhood dreams
came true,
and where
I would - too soon - discover
that I had
so much more to learn
about being
the kind of woman
I wanted to be,

and not the girl
who ran away...



[photo by Steve Chitwood]

"bring yourself home…"

 no lost innocence, 
lost purpose,
or joy
no lost promise,
or misplaced inspiration

leave those 90 and 9
ruminative
habits,
frustrating
self-certainties,
and rut-weary
opinions

about who you think you
have become

behind

walk
away from
the
wet-wool
heaviness
of what you think
you've sacrificed
in order to have it all

the accumulated
growth,
the un-sheared
resentments,
the matted-down and
patted-down

the price
you think
you've paid
for the life you
now live

rest from those
patterns of
walking back
and forth,
back and forth -
grazing along the same path

until the fresh grass is
gone and all that's
left is stubble -
the scrub-worn
and weary

the over-grazed ground
of what you've always done

go and find
the once-known
and new-bourne

seek the ever-innocent

search the forgotten places,
the child-like nooks and crannies

let yourself be
found,
carried,
washed clean

bring your lamb-self
home -

and rejoice...



[photoart by the extraordinary Jamie Heiden]

"roots entwined…."

 

we existed
on our own island

sisters
leaning into one another,
reaching for our dreams,
living with roots entwined,
and branches curled
like fingers
as we braided each other's hair
in the moonlight…”



[photo art: the extraordinary Jamie Heiden Photography 2014]

"the weight of stillness…"

 "be still..."
- Psalms

She comes to me in the night
like a young maiden in moccasins
tiptoeing silently over soft pine needles
i must be perfectly still
to hear Her soft touch
against the earth

to feel the weight
of Her message
on my heart…

"feel Her
presence in the
whispering woods....”

~ Samuel

"being drawn…"

 "through the scent of water
it will bud,
and bring forth boughs
like a plant.."
- Job

my leaves seek the Sun
my roots reach toward Water,
i yield to the Wind,
i search out
the deepest places of the earth

i have no self-volition
i am drawn into shape
by Her
Irresistible
hand ...

"Yea,
I have loved thee
with an everlasting love:
therefore
with lovingkindness
have I drawn thee....”

~ Jeremiah



[artwork: Jamie Heiden Photography]