Poems From The Porch
Blue Pond Springs, St. Charles Canyon, Cache National Forest, Idaho
White Aspen bark with green leaves poised to turn
Amber dragonfly glinting in the sun
Vacant blue sky inviting the day dreamer to imagine possibilities
The season has changed for me, and I am hopeful — not in outcomes or positive futures, but that I can in-joy the sacred present, integrating my pain as fertilizer for compassion and gratitude.
The wind is tickling the sunny aspen leaves, making them giggle.
The laughter moves through them in waves, just like the tides of our lives.
Impermanence is a blessed reality, and seasons are necessary.
One day my body will die, but my essence will not.
You will breathe my presence as a sweet fragrance of love,
exhaling your own unique scent to be inhaled and savored by all whose paths you cross.
The transition of loved ones makes evident the truth of this, an embodied felt-sense of
” I am because we are.”
Engaging With The Poem
Poetry can be a doorway to the soul and your own creativity. Throughout the ages, the written word has been used as a means to access personal truth and as a vehicle for prayer through the practice of sacred reading (lectio divina). I encourage you to try this beautiful practice and let its truths to be self-evident.
How To Practice Sacred Reading
Read+Reflect+Respond+Rest
READ the passage through slowly more than once, noticing how it feels in your body and the response of your heart.
REFLECT: What word resonates with you? What phrase speaks to you? What overall personal meaning comes to you? Allow yourself to follow a tangent.
RESPOND by making space for the prayer of your heart to manifest. Write down the words and/or phrases that resonate with you, and allow them to arrange themselves into your own poem or prayer.
REST with your eyes closed, perhaps using the word that most resonates with you as your mantra for silent meditation.
Dear friend,
May your mind be peaceful and calm, may your body be relaxed and comfortable, and may your heart be filled with love.
Thank you for reading.
Blessings and gratitude, Ani