Monthly Archives: May 2021

Unknown's avatar Jeff Flesch 3:00 pm on May 31, 2021
Tags: , , , , , , nightsend, , , , , , tests   

Nights End

Photo by Diego PH on Unsplash

The view
from atop,
seems far to drop,
into thinking
and behaving
in new ways,
a fresh perspective,
is what they say,
can go a long way.

I concur
with these remenints
of the past,
and wonder, at times,
if they truly last.

Do we learn from
our past misdeeds?

And create anew
from a space that seeds
humanity,
with a newness
and a brilliance,
we can pass along
to all those who come
after we pass?

Questions to ponder,
and reflect upon,
as we meander
our way
through a kaleidoscope
of memory
and present temereties.

Knowing too
that these shall pass,
like all the rest. For, in
each moment
lives the gift of choice
we’ve been given, yes,
one of our true tests.

Study well, then,
my dear friends,
for the tests
continue to come
well into
our night’s end.

#poetry, #development, #future, #learning, #life, #love, #nightsend, #past, #poem, #poems, #present, #resilience, #tests

Unknown's avatar Jeff Flesch 6:00 am on May 31, 2021
Tags: culture, diversity, , geography, , , , , , , salem, silverfalls, , ,   

Willamette Valley Wanderings and Wonderings: Silver Falls State Park

Silver Falls State Park, Oregon

Instead of a diary entry this week, I’ve chosen to write another entry in the Willamette Valley Wanderings and Wonderings Series. Ready? Good, here we go.

Wanderings

Last week, I hiked Silver Falls State Park, which is just outside of Salem, Oregon. The park is picturesque and beautiful. There are two main trails that take you from the South Falls to the North Falls and back again, for a total of 8.7 miles.

One trail takes you down into the gorge, and winds you in and out of different smaller trails. Along the way there are 10 different waterfalls you can experience. I managed to see 7 or 8; and, they were stunning.

I started at the South Falls, which is where the largest waterfall is located.

Gorgeous, yes? Yes.

From there it is about a 4 mile hike to the North Falls, and along the way there are some very pretty landscapes and riverscapes.

Here some of the other waterfalls along the way.

Once at the North Falls, I stopped to eat and drink a little. At this point, you can hike up to the Upper North Rim, which adds another .8 miles to the trip. I chose to forgo that portion of the hike, and head back along the rim trail.

About half-way back to the South Falls, I descended again into the gorge. It was such a fun trip. I began the hike at 7:30 am and finished at 11:15 am. When I started there were only a few cars in the parking lot, and when I finished there were only a few parking spaces left.

Wonderings

As I hiked I reflected upon my time growing up in Los Angeles, and the privilege I had as a child, youth, and young adult. Privilege in seeing and experiencing so much diversity. Diversity in landscapes, people, places, well, all of it was diverse. Lovely.

For the past 12 years, I’ve lived in much smaller areas, and I miss diverse people and places. Yet, as I hiked back to the South Falls last week, I was pleasantly surprised by the flood of diverse people coming into the park and on the trails. Yes, I did also get a little anxious. Mainly due to being away from people this past year during the pandemic.

Yet, most of what I felt was the deep connection I always get when I’m around people. As a Highly Sensitive Person (HSP), I have the ability to feel other people’s emotions deeply, and can get from people, without words, much. Yes, it can be overwhelming, and, yet, it is also deeply profound. A true gift.

Being around so many diverse people excites me even more for my trip to Los Angeles next week, and for the coming trips I’ll take in the next few years.

Beautiful experiences, beautiful people, beautiful planet.

Here are some more pics from the hike.

#culture, #diversity, #experiential, #geography, #highlysensitivepeople, #hiking, #life, #losangeles, #love, #oregon, #salem, #silverfalls, #travel, #waterfalls, #willamettevalleyhiking

Unknown's avatar Jeff Flesch 6:00 am on May 30, 2021
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Dancing Trees

Photo by Studio Dekorasyon on Unsplash

Have you ever seen
a treen
dancing brilliantly,
just as the wind
whips up and flows
gently among
the branches and
the tender fibers of it’s being,
ever so elegantly?

Walking along the sidewalk,
cracks in its façade,
breaking,
yet whole and solidifying.

The wind behind you,
moving
you forward,
just as you are pulled
into another dimension
of being;

and,

you look up
to witness
Nature smiling,
while continually
providing you
clues

to our existence,
trees dancing
in the sunlight,
glinting and radiating
their essence
of everlasting delight.

You know from within,
they are
dancing for you,
and you pause,
to take in all of their splendor,
big smile on your face,
and you laugh and giggle
just like you did
when you were little.

Oh, the joy,
of nature’s gifts
bestowed upon
us all,
it’s enough to forestall,
while you continue
to watch
them dancing,
all.

#poetry, #contemplation, #dancing, #existence, #gifts, #introspection, #joy, #life, #love, #nature, #poem, #poems, #trees, #wind

Unknown's avatar Jeff Flesch 3:00 pm on May 29, 2021
Tags: , , , , , , ,   

Haiku #27

luxurious earth
underfoot, remain centered
in the multitudes

#poetry, #connection, #earth, #haiku, #humanity, #nature, #poem, #poems

Unknown's avatar Jeff Flesch 6:00 am on May 29, 2021
Tags: , , , , , , , ,   

Understanding

Photo by Huper by Joshua Earle on Unsplash

Inquiring within,
just makes you grin
while you continue
to ponder
and reflect upon
all of life’s wonders.

Connection so deep,
you hear the ocean
in every breath,
and feel the breeze of
it’s salty mist,
even after you’ve already
left.

Considerations run
along a thread
of time,
which is sublime,
and, at times,
difficult to find.

Contemplation
requires
a measure
of boldness,
to face
the pain
of another’s life
with stoicism.

Cradling love
in a basket,
weaved with tears
of both pain
and pleasure,
you realize
it’s in between the two,
where life’s requesting
a measure of your solitude.

Quiet now,
you listen and learn
about the riddle,
which perplexed
the mind
for a very long time.

Stillness requires
a sense of vulnerability
and resiliency,
to guide us to the table
of our
greater understanding.

#poetry, #contemplation, #introspection, #mindfulness, #poem, #poems, #reflection, #stillness, #understanding

Unknown's avatar Jeff Flesch 6:00 am on May 27, 2021
Tags: , , , , , , , ,   

Tenderness

Photo by Persnickety Prints on Unsplash and Photo by Glen Hodson on Unsplash and Photo by Ursula Gamez on Unsplash

Eyes shine forth, as
they beckon
and seize the caldron
of all that’s come
before.

Knowing
all they’ve seen,
relieved, and
shaped after a parcel
of the pear tree.

Instrumental in providing
a comfortable tether,
as reality becomes
show stopping
and compartmental.

Living
a life of their own
believing in all
that their shown,
and holding onto
the wealth of a

reality grown

from seeds
planted long ago,
cradled, tended, and
watered with love and a
tenderness all their own.

#poetry, #connection, #grace, #humanity, #life, #love, #poem, #poems, #wisdom

Unknown's avatar Jeff Flesch 6:00 am on May 25, 2021
Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,   

Confidence

Image credit; Mine

Mountains in the distance,
at times,
it’s how it feels when
we are apart,
not living in this instance.

I look out over the rippling
blue water
waving at me,
shimmering in the partial sun
on a day
that is mostly gone.

And, I feel quiet inside,
as I consider
the measure of our commonness,
and smile in the knowing,
that we
will harness more

time, as needed,

as we prepare
for the next confidence
of our
collective consciousness.

In response to the WDYS #83 prompt from Keep it Alive, by Sadje.

#poetry, #confidence, #connection, #consciousness, #contemplation, #introspection, #life, #love, #poem, #poems, #wdys

Unknown's avatar Jeff Flesch 6:00 pm on May 23, 2021
Tags: , , , , , , , , , rooted,   

Rooted

Photo by Omar Ram on Unsplash

I hike the trail,
while also knowing
the trail hikes me, which
though it may seem like a paradox,
is just another example of the oneness of
this world’s orthodox.

As we move on the trail,
there are wonders
to behold
as a whole myriad of greenness
comes to life
before our very eyes,
and, we begin to see why

it is that this world,
is so full of pain
and pleasure both,

though

there is another way
forward,
if you are so bold.

Remembering
that all of nature
is a reflection
of all that we see
beneath
the layers
of memories and ideas
we’ve held onto
out of necessity
and, in part, grandiosity.

Notions
of what’s come before,
become magical connections,
just like the trees roots,
as they make their necessary
preparations.

Rooted
in the unknowing,
we become like the tree,
both flexible,
and deeply anchored,
in the One with the knowing.

In response to Writing Contest by Soni, from Soni’s thoughts.

#poetry, #beauty, #contemplation, #introspection, #knowing, #nature, #poem, #poems, #reflection, #rooted, #unknown

Unknown's avatar Jeff Flesch 12:06 pm on May 23, 2021
Tags: , , , , , , , , , silver falls state park, ,   

A Blogger’s Diary 5/23/21: On the Week, Writing and Reflecting, Hiking, and Beauty

This Week

This week was full of preparation for the next fiscal year; and, continuing to reflect upon all of the beauty that surrounds us – really, both are equally true of this past week.

Before I write more about the latter, let’s take a look at the writing that occurred this week.

Writing and Reflecting

Photo by Kazi Mizan on Unsplash

The poem Beyond Time was a reflection on the internal work I’ve been engaged in these past four years. Continuing to be present to my emotions as they arise, and then following those back to the experiential seed.

The poem is also a reflection upon stillness of mind, which can and does occur, and the fact that, in those moments there is no time; it simply does not exist. Beautiful.

Writing the poem Atop, which was inspired by the WDYS #82 prompt, from Keep it Alive, by Sadje, was an interesting process. Initially, I had one idea, even wrote two stanzas, and then as I contemplated the two stanzas, another insight occurred, which is the poem in its present state.

Simply, the world exists in its present condition, when we view it as such. New experiences occur, and the world comes into view. As I’ve written about previously, the view we experience is based upon the concepts we hold about the world; and, this is only one way to view the world. 

As I’ve found out about, and experienced, there are many other ways to view the world, which is, well, quite freeing. 

Hiking

As you all know, I have a new series, Willamette Valley Wanderings and Wonderings, which now has two installments. This week, I hiked Silver Falls State Park, which was absolutely amazing.

I will save the details of the hike for the next installment of the Willamette Valley Wanderings and Wonderings series, however, I just had to include a few more pics in this diary entry.

Beauty

Photo by Matthias Oberholzer on Unsplash

As I walked around campus this week, and contemplated the hike I was going to take on Saturday, I was present to all of the beauty that surrounds us. A flower blooming, a bird calling, a leaf dancing in the wind, a stranger helping another, there are so many things right in front of us, when we pay attention.

Part of my internal work, as you know, also includes my meditation practice, which has been transformational in my life. Being fully present is a gift, and we all have this gift within us.

When we let go of the concepts that typically drive our reactions, pause, reflect and contemplate our life, we learn stillness; and, it is in this stillness where presence to all that is within us, and without us lives. Beautiful.

As you walk through your week, notice the flowers, the trees, the people, and how that makes you feel. It is a tremendous experience.

Alright, that’s all for this week, my friends.

Be well, and have a lovely week.

#beauty, #blog, #blogger, #bloggers-diary, #blogging, #contemplation, #hiking, #introspection, #presence, #silver-falls-state-park, #willamettevalleyhiking, #writingandreflecting

Unknown's avatar Jeff Flesch 6:00 pm on May 22, 2021
Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,   

Haiku #26

Silver Falls State Park, Oregon

the sounds of water
cascade through me, quiet and
quite beyond compare

I made it out to Silver Falls State Park today. What an amazing morning. Beautiful. I will share more about the hike in the next installment of Willamette Valley Wanderings and Wonderings, yet just had to share this pic, and the accompanying haiku, which occured to me as I took in all of the beauty today.

#poetry, #beauty, #haiku, #hiking, #life, #love, #nature, #poem, #poems, #water, #waterfalls