Poetry: "Grief, my old friend..."

Grief, my old friend;
My past and present;
tragedies and triumphs.

Grief, I am told,
is something to be honored
but only for a time;
The root of a soon rampant
and ruminative mind.

Grief, a burden, I am told
is suffering through loss;
A mine from which
to extract gold
though if clung to, at a cost.

Grief, so beautiful & bold.
Grief, so evergreen.
Grief, beyond the wretched,
sooty veil, and dreary days,
not quite as it may seem.

Grief, far more than dross,
is, dare I say, a welcomed stay
– not just clinging to a loss.

An act of love, a tribute,
and regard as evidenced.
Oh, Grief, my dear old friend;
The gift of all experienced;
A "Fare thee well!", a tale we tell,
and token of time spent.

WoflHeart Way H.E.A.R.T. Spring Retreat 2024

Poetry: "Letting Go"

It is good to know when to let go.

We are invited to be honest

with ourselves and others.

We are allowed to be happy

and to pursue what nourishes

our body, minds, and spirits.

We are allowed to love

and to recognize and receive

the type of love we are worthy of.

Love cannot be faked or forced –

it cannot be found

where it no longer exists,

nor denied where it does.

I am grateful for my past,

deliberate with my present,

and optimistic about my future.

I am cultivating a happy, fulfilling,

and purposeful journey forward

whether I am accepted or rejected

for choosing to live as I see fit.

I wish everyone the best out there

in a world where people

have alot to say, think, and feel

about things they know so little of.

It is important to approach

people & situations

with curiosity versus condemnation.

When we do not ask or listen,

our thoughts, opinions & actions

lack compassion and context, and

our understanding is partial.

We know that it hurts to be judged,

and so we try our best not to do so.

Alas, we are imperfect human beings

– all of us "walking each other home,"
embracing the gift of our existence

with each breath we take, as we

strive to lead meaningful lives, ever

stumbling along the path we're on.

It is good to know when to let go

and to make room for new

opportunities for growth and healing.

It is good to mature and to thrive

undeterred by those who cannot understand.

Occasionally we'll take a leap of faith

and yield to and appreciate

wherever we then land.

Our present there beneath our feet

and agency on hand.

Photo Credit:  A.O.Reed

Poetry: "All a person needs..."

Some days a little walking
is all a person needs.
No talking. Just their body,
shuffling 'top some rustling leaves.
A canopy of blue,
the bowing of some trees,
the tickle of some tall grass,
on the shins, beneath their knees.
Some days the warmth & sunshine,
birds flirting with the breeze,
and some air to fill their laboring lungs
are all a person needs.

Photo Credit:  A.O.Reed

The Crimson and Cold

First light. I'm parallel parked in some town somewhere. I am in a vehicle with the window ajar. The cold intrudes, advances, and engulfs. I watch as my breath creeps toward the dashboard and slips out the window.

Bits of my soul, I muse. 

A man approaches. I motion him in. He opens the door, sits beside me, and shuts it. He cups his woolen sheathed hands together, purses his cracked lips, blows into them, and rubs. I twist the key, the engine cranks. No ignition. I give it another go. And another.

Finally.

The engine starts. He gets to talking. We're off.

He's providing counsel like, "You should go back," "You need to change [this], [that], [and the other]," "You ought to see if..." 

His voice trails off—muffled by the drum of underinflated tires and the hum of wind blustering through my slightly rolled-down window. 

We drive through a neighborhood that reminds me of my late grandmother's. A patch of grass and dirt hemmed in by roads flanked with homes.

I mumble, "Only larger..."

I've interrupted his monologue. 

"Huh?" he says.

I ignore him.

On Pieces of Me

Revised: Originally published 
February 21, 2012, 12:35 AM

Art: Via Jeremy Kyler: Abstract 
Self-Portrait, oil on canvas, 18x24

Details fascinate me. I am interested in Intra and Interpersonal matters, mindset, persona, and interplay. I’d like to understand what constitutes a whole or drives an outcome. I realize that it is bits, elements, encounters, events, and their deliberate, skillful, or accidental arrangements that do so. Still, I want to know precisely which bits, and the nature of these arrangements.

Everything that exists shares an enduring bond—although ties can be tenuous or even indeterminable, you can be sure it is all entangled. As humans, our communication and involvement with other living things, entities, and objects elicit various outcomes which  present new challenges, opportunities, and insights. Our experiences and relationships are impactful, shaping our thoughts and behaviors over our lifetimes. Some things are more evocative than others. Who we are is determined by genetic and environmental factors. These factors are in play since conception. I now use this understanding to reflect on my past and to help make sense of my present. It is essential to familiarize ourselves with what influences us to think and behave as we do—the bits matter. These are mine. 

On Children: 'How Does Your Garden Grow?'

Revised: Originally published 
Feb. 21, 2012, 12:35 AM

Life is replete with experience. As we progress through it, we eventually graduate to a state of adulthood. It is here that we are finally free to make all our own decisions. It is the precipice off which "No! I don't want to!" or "I'd much rather..." may finally leap, to spread its wings and take flight! Adulthood is the arena inside which "But why?" may ultimately propel itself from the top-buckle, on to the adversarial "Because I said so!" and deliver its felling blow.

As children, many of us are told what to believe, what to do, when to do it, why to do it, how to do it, what is appropriate, and what is real. Prevalent normative messages and social conventions of both primary and secondary social groups (feel free to read about the defining characteristics of each group for yourself), significantly influence people's behaviors and ideas. These social forces inform previous and preceding generations' parenting styles.