after days of steady rain
. . . thick ashy clouds
tumble through the woods
when a slash of light
gilds the wet, skeletal trees
and fills their emptiness
with luminous roses
just long enough
to say don’t forget
***
Let your eyes and heart wander through the words. Pay attention to what catches your attention: in your mind, in your body or in your emotions. The spur may be a word, line, phrase or image. Those are perfect places to linger and explore discoveries opening to you on this day.
And if you want some ideas to deepen your engagement in the poem, here are some thoughts for your consideration.
* * *
Recall a time when a long period of difficulty was interrupted by breakthrough moments. Describe in detail your “slash of light” and the circumstance in which it arose. What was universal about your predicament? What was unique about your breakthroughs? Were these insights lasting or limited to the current situation? Is there a fundamental truth about life that arrived through your experience?
My teacher, Bob Duggan, spoke of our shared human condition as being characterized by learning, forgetting then relearning our most important lessons. Explore, with a lot of heart, whether this plays out in your life; and if so how. How might you cultivate patience for this cycle of events? How might you cultivate remembrance?
Take the time now to recall things you never want to forget? What memories? What deep learnings? What discovered beauty or wonder or truth? What desires?
poem as portal 