TRUST -- the saddest poem I've ever written

I remember the first time, twelve years ago,
   when a spring-loaded kitten
      jumped down from my desk and sat on my lap.
His name was Shamus,
   but we sometimes called him "Wild Thing",
      so I was delighted to have earned a little trust.

Today, "Wild Thing" was sitting on my lap for the very last time,
    as we waited for the vet to open that dreaded door.
He was serene -- I was sad,
   but also delighted that he put all his trust in me.
I remember thinking how his life is truly in my hands,
     and how it troubles me to have already made a decision
         that he doesn't know about ...
 or does he?

Hey!

Just because it's not about you

doesn't mean that you're not affected by it.

If someone closes a door on your finger or in your face,

even if it's unintentional, 

you have a right to say: "Hey! You closed the door on me!".

If you don't say "Hey!", at least once in a while,

you'll slip backwards toward Irrelevance.

Some people want to be irrelevant.

It requires no courage -- but the cost is self-respect. 

Others refuse to be ignored.

Have no expectations.

If you say, "Hey!" and they get defensive,

rather than apologetic or compassionate,

that's the time to turn the other cheek.

Just watch your fingers next time.

At the End of a Busy Day

Click Photo to enlarge it

TOWARD FULFILLMENT

(Reprise from April 11, 2010 - with one word change)

    Where are you going, my Little One ...?

We choose our path and pack our own duffel,
     mostly with stuff that's not worth its weight;
         and we set out on our own private odyssey --
             or perhaps we wait for a ship that never comes.

Though never quite sure where we are going,
     we are guided by Wisdom bought with pain
         and by a gift of Grace, which somehow appears,
             perhaps delivered by a prophet, or just by a friend.

The Cloud of Unknowing hides some distractions
      and we suddenly realize what we've known all along:
          that Being Loved is the place we have been longing for;
              and Loving is the only way that will surely get us there.
       
                    All the rest is colored bubbles.

TRUSTING in GOD

Suppose you’re on the edge of a cliff, the brink of the Unknown.
You’re facing the setting sun, an angry sea behind you, far below.
Suppose God asks you to stand on your toes,
raise your arms into a crucifixion pose -- and fall backwards,
trusting that the ocean has been filled with God's Grace.
Could you do it?  There's no shame in saying "No".
So, let’s try something with a little less risk.
Shall we?

Go into your bedroom tonight and turn off the light.
Close the door, leaving your worries in the hall --
preferably in a plastic bag, all tied-up tight.
Sit on the foot of your bed and say two little prayers:
one for someone you know, and another for someone you don't.
Then, try to sit for at least a minute without thinking at all.
Just listen.  In the Darkness, God says, "Trust Me."
Did you hear it?

God says your Guardian Angel just sprinkled Grace
all over your blanket, like Tinkerbell and her pixie dust.
She stuffed some in your pillow, too; and there’s plenty left over.
(If you recall, God had planned to fill the ocean with Grace.)
Now, fall backwards from your sitting position,
rest your head on that pillow and cover up with that blanket.
Let God keep the world spinning for a while without your help.
Can you do it?

Let go, Dear Heart, and sleep in serenity
trusting that God will send the Morning Sun
to bring warmth, light for your path and new hope.
Perhaps the Garbage Angel will pick up your worries before you awaken.
Above all, remember God's promise to bless you
with all the Grace you’ll need to get through One More Day.
Since the day you were born, God has always kept that promise.
Hasn't She?

A SPECIAL BLESSING for SOMEONE I'VE KNOWN ALL MY LIFE

FOR ME

May Wisdom find me.
May Enlightenment guide me.
May I be marinated in Serenity, day and night.
May my Confidence and Humility learn to get along.

May my weaknesses become my strengths.
May Anxiety be transformed into Enthusiasm,
Obsessiveness into Endurance, Sadness into Serenity
Restlessness into Motivation, and Distraction into Imagination.

May I love myself as I love my neighbor.
May I be aware and accepting of whatever Love is offered to me.
May my Expectations of others dissolve in Mindfulness that they, too,
      are learning how to give and accept Love; and they may be repeating a grade.

May I notice the absence of physical pain, as well its presence.
May my pain remind me of the agony Christ quietly accepted for me.
May it serve as my offering on behalf of one of the multitude of Innocents
      who are suffering today from Hunger, Disease, Injustice, Oppression and Abuse.*

May I never forget that I am a Child of God.
May I have Faith in Him to match his Faith in Me.
May I realize that I do not have to earn His Guidance, Protection and Love.
May I muster enough Courage, each day, to show up for the Life He has planned for me.

*Even as I write this, the pain in my feet subsides considerably, replaced by warmth and a gentle tingling. I hope this means my offering was accepted -- and I wonder who and where is the beneficiary.

FALLING IN LOVE -- Counting the Ways: #1

Elizabeth Barrett Browning
wrote a perfectly good poem that begins with
"How do I love thee? Let me count the ways."
It was not a long poem, though.
Perhaps she, too, had an attention deficit.
So, to help her out, I've started to compile
one more poetry collection in my open-ended series
of unfinished collections of poetry*.


Suppose you were falling
from a cliff and I was trying to save you
and I've got you by one hand
and I've got the cliff edge by the other
but I can't pull you up
so I have to hold on to your hand forever.
Then suppose I'm human
and I just can't hold on any longer
and I have to make a choice about letting go
with one hand or the other.

That one's a no-brainer.
I'd let go of the cliff,
and we'd fall, in love,
with one another.
What's that?
You say you're not likely
to be hanging from a cliff any time soon?
All the same, if you don't mind,
I'll be right here,
holding on to you as if you were.


*NOTE: This Blog and DrSpeedbump.com
are bit like the great cathedrals of Europe.
Eh? Never finished, but still open to the public.
At least my web pages are not excessively grandiose,
and mostly English is spoken here.

SOMETHING RESEMBLING an OGRE

When something resembling an Ogre
has found a home in your backyard,
walk around the beast, three times at least,
before you start poking at it.
Provoked, it might attack suddenly.
Unprovoked, it will likely circle you
to assess your behavior,
instead of starting to poke at you.

You'll soon realize that the two of you
are dancing rather than fighting.
You'll see one another from all different angles.
You may learn that your dance partner
is merely something resembling an Ogre,
and not at all fearsome or ferocious.
It could be fun, you know --
even if it is a real Ogre.

BE STILL ~ Based on Psalm 46, more or less

There is nothing in the world that resembles God so much as silence.

~ Meister Eckhart (1260-1328)

Be still and know that I am God

Be still and know

Be still

be

b

...

TOWARD FULFILLMENT

    Where are you going, my Little One ...?

We choose our path and pack our own duffel,
     mostly with stuff that's not worth its weight;
         and we set out on our own private odyssey --
             or perhaps we wait for a ship that never comes.

Though never quite sure where we are going,
     we are guided by Wisdom bought with pain
         and by a gift of Grace, which somehow appears,
             perhaps delivered by a prophet, or just by a friend.

The Cloud of Unknowing hides some distractions
      and we suddenly recall what we've known all along:
          that Being Loved is the place we have been longing for;
              and Loving is the only way that will surely get us there.
       
                    All the rest is colored bubbles.

TRUST THE WIND

There's a reason why the Wind brought you here.
Simply being unable to figure out what it is
     has no effect on its fulfillment.  Trust the Wind.

Flowers that go unnoticed will be fruitful.
Blossoms picked will never yield fruit,
     but they, too, have not failed in their duty.

Soak up the Rain and Sun -- Bloom in your own garden.
The Wind will do what it will and, one way or another,
     whether you know it or not, you shall be Fulfilled.