Tag Archive | Poetry

Tangled

Jan3


Tangled in my zentangles

And there is no way out 

It’s an obsession

It’s hard to stop

So much variety

So many possibilities 

All leading to beauty

Unexpected, a surprise

If I write poems

I try to write everyday

If I make collage cups

I keep making them and collecting them

Now that I draw zentsngles

It has becomes a daily affair

Something in the repetition 

Is soothing, reassuring 

It’s all about art

And art is uplifting

And there is the element of surprise

My work is never planned ahead 

So it is that my zentangles 

Have tangled me in their web 

Dec 30, 2023

magical alphabet

Nov20

They look like writing

Beautiful, soulful, intricate strokes

But this alphabet was created by Lorraine Prichard

Inspired by the Tablets written in the hand writing of the Bab

A Holy soul in the East has influenced a receptive soul in the West

And the result is mesmerizing 

Never say, “They are easy to be reproduced”

There is a lot of precise moment, and astonishing artistry involved 

And Lorraine does this effortlessly 

Black strokes on a large, striking, yellow upside down triangle

White lines on a black rectangular background

And the list goes on

These creations come from a magical place

That we don’t often consider or think about

Nov. 19, 2023

After Lorraine’s studio exhibition 

Living in the now

Oct29

IMG_0788

The future is unpredictable 

Especially when you have been diagnosed with cancer

There is always the chance of recurrence down the line 

But you can’t think like that 

You can’t think you are totally healthy either 

Because that may not end up being true 

So what do I do? 

I am healthy right now 

Relatively anyway 

So I’ll focus on that 

And appreciate each day

I am healthy and I’m getting the best treatment possible 

So, I’m grateful 

And I’m thankful for the lessons I have learned

And what I can share with others

Which will hopefully make a difference 

The future is unpredictable 

But I will live in the present 

And appreciate now! 

October 25, 2023

My spirit

Sep19

A1E6859C-5214-4A7B-81FE-032101D1B507

My laughter does not age

There are wrinkles around my mouth

But my laughter still brings joy to others

My love does not age

My heart may show signs of the time elapsed

But my love grows deeper 

My writing does not age

My hands are not as smooth as before 

But what I write is based on much more experience 

My feet and knee hurt sometimes

But my legs carry me to new places every day 

My courage grows

My compassion strengthens 

And my appreciation increases

My body my age

But my spirit is strong and perhaps more vibrant 

September 19, 2023 

Gratitude

Sep12

IMG_9661

Not to take life for granted
Not to take health for granted
Not to discount the amazing opportunity that is aging
Not to wait to do what one wants to do
These are the gifts of a disease like cancer

Gratitude for the treatments that are available
Gratitude for the support of friends and family
Gratitude for the strength that comes from the spiritual world
Gratitude for managing another challenge in life
Gratitude for the lessons these challenges teach us
Gratitude for deep conversations I’ve had with friends as a result
Gratitude for the love I feel from so many people
Gratitude for learning to live life purposefully
Gratitude for the warm embrace of friendship
These are the things I’m grateful for

September 12, 2023

Not religious

Jul25

54BC80BB-590B-4272-82D6-AE3B9404C51B

He told me he is not religious

But he believes any good thing you do for others comes back to you

Karma, I guess

I thought to myself

I think that’s exactly what being religious is about

Doing good deeds and helping other without wanting a reward

Otherwise, what good comes of being religious?

If religion does not make you a better person

If religion does not teach you to help others

If religion does not tell you about the importance of selflessness

What good is religion?

If you call yourself something but you do something else

You are an imposter

You are just pretending

It doesn’t do you or others any good

If you call yourself a peacock

But act like a chicken

Then, you are a chicken 

It’s not about what you call yourself

It’s about how you live your life

July 25th, 2023

On writing

Jun28

06676910-C3A4-48E0-A423-0B3F8E216F9B

Nothing to do
Nowhere to be
No one to see
Quiet surroundings
Only the sound of the birds
Me and my thoughts
Those are the conditions of writing for me
Once a phrase is there
I start and see where it goes

Time is needed
Can’t be rushing all the time
Need to sit for a while with my thoughts
Contemplate
Connect to that deep place in my soul
Where meaning roams
Where emotions dance
Where ideas emerge

In that solemn space
Words appear out of seemingly nowhere
And flow across the page

June 28th, 2023

Ten shining souls

Jun27

3A0835D4-6BBF-42E2-843A-6EBEB215FCB7

It would have been better to be executed

Than continue to be in prison under those conditions

It was the early days of the revolution and 

Many Baha’is were imprisoned and a number of them were executed

There were no social media back then

No online campaigns

These dark deeds took place 

Without the knowledge of others

Only the family of the prisoners and their friends

Would find out their fate after it was too late

Illegal arrests and imprisonments

No lawyers

Sham court proceedings 

Torture 

Asking the prisoners to recant and be set free

Asking them for money to spare their lives

Unspeakable acts 

The prisoners’ only refuge 

Their Faith

Their support for each other 

Their determination to stand firm 

To hear the moaning of other prisoners in pain

To witness the result of the torture of their friends 

To be insulted and humiliated 

It was easier to be executed and set free of those terrible conditions 

But Olya was released 

And she did was she promised the others

She told the story of the ten brave women of Shiraz 

Now the whole world knows what went on

During those terrible days and

The sacrifices that were made by these pure souls 

They were released from this mortal world

And their spirits soared towards their Beloved

Their suffering ended 

And they proved their love and devotion

Those were dark days 

But the light these souls shine 

Will illumine our world forever 

June 15, 2023

Inspired by a talk by Olya Roohizadegan  

about ten Baha’i women killed in Shiraz in 1983

A woman’s voice

Jun21

 

D7DCE750-9576-46B9-8985-B925BF1FCDA3
A meeting is in progress over Zoom

University professors and administrators at work

I hear the confident voice of a woman 

Who seems to be chairing the meeting

The cadence of her voice 

It’s tone

The words she uses

All tell of her competence

And her assurance that she is being heard

Because she has ideas that are important to share

I hear men’s voices too 

But hers is dominant

They are obviously solving problems and making plans

How wonderful to see women in science

In the highest echelons 

Voicing their opinions

Leading the charge

This is how it should be in all areas

This is the sign of things to come

June 21st, 2023

Mother tongue

May3

C3C7B847-8204-492C-93B0-9F80EEC29028

I’m sitting at the coffee shop 

Having my morning coffee and writing

There is a couple sitting to my left

The woman has dark curly hair

The man is wearing a suit

They are having an animated conversation

In a language other than French or English

There is a man sitting to my right

The food he is having as a wonderful aroma

An early lunch

He is talking on the phone

Speaking in a language other than French or English

This, my friends is Canada

Where we often hear people speaking in their native tongues

Waves of immigrants keep coming to Canada every year

And with them they bring their cultures and languages

They learn English and French too

But they also converse in their mother tongue

This, my friends is Canada 

May 3rd, 2023