as the breeze comes through the window,
I hang hopes on clouds, running fast,
and furious, quite profound
are they
beautiful, translucent, and full of
magical movement, transcending this
momentโฆ
light and dark, in a dance of mysterious
tapestry, woven gently, and carefully,
by the unseen, preen
shielding you and me, from the glean,
as the shadows begin to dance with
the trees
the flowers perk up, and provide a love
seen
lasting centuriesโฆ
Photo by fietzfotos, Pixabay
heart bared,
and transfigured,
manipulated,
just like a trigger
pulled on
again, and again
I often
asked myself
then
where
did this
story beginโฆ
in a
deserted
landscape, devoid
of senses, and
flushed
with ambiguity
we reflect
upon
those moments,
with a zeal
and flourish
and,
understand
today, they
kept us away
from the connection
we felt,
deep inside
actions
eluding us,
unable to take
ahold of
the unity dealt,
however, aligned
in
the presence,
and
knowing,
always arising, yet
unable to abide
in our heartโs center,
so bold and kind
and, years laterโฆ
the knowing
did not subside,
rather, it
grew deeper, and
shined forth,
just like
a star-
spangled night
I stared
at the screen,
and nothing came
forward,
until
a whisper
of something
quite different
came flying by,
in pure insistence
unannounced
at the time,
was this tiny flicker
of insight,
waiting to be seen
on just
the right night
feeling
first,
is how it works
a stirring,
awaiting
recognition,
as it
makes its way
to the floor outside
our open hearts door
knocking
for entry, realizing
weโre retreating,
it waits,
wonders, and
all the while
saunters,
back and forth
pacing,
and relishing
in the journey
at our hearts very core
sending
messages unheard,
unseen,
yet felt
by those
with the ability
to be free
from constricted sense-
abilities
arising
more,
while numbness
subsides,
resulting in
a most fantastic
grin,
which I adore
ages
come and go,
yet,
wherever
we do travel,
human beings
on this planet
know one thing
for sure
open hearts
have healed
for ages, and
will continue to
far past the time
when
weโve left this plane
forevermore
I sat down last night to write my diary entry, and, well, nothing came forward. That was, until I opened the document I use to write poetry drafts. Then, this piece came forward. How fun it all is.
Have a beautiful week, everyone.
Head under water,
necessitates
another way of being,
while the paradox of life
keeps on playing.
Hard to breathe,
lungs burning,
heart aching,
all the while,
the mind
keeps
straying.
Tears fall,
while hope
lingers
along my fingers.
A subtle touch,
and feeling returns
to the essence
of my being.
While drenched
in my solitude,
the connection
remains
among you.
Like the birth
of a flower,
time is now
flourishing
without heartache
or sorrow.
And,
as time skips a beat,
love finds me,
cradles me
with care,
and in that moment,
I know,
Iโm not beyond repair.
If youโve not yet checked out Asthaโs Anthology, Utmost Feelings, please check it out when you have a chance, and share as you are able. Thank you.
Additionally, a few of the coauthors of Asthaโs Anthology, Utmost Feelings, are creating a space for people to send their sentiments to Asthaโs family.
If you are interested, please add your sentiments to this form, thank you, and stay blessed.
Full of curiosity,
and hope, which bespoke
a quadril of smoke
in their eyes,
as they look up,
considering a
host of possibilities,
which some may
deem a masterstroke,
and others?
A practical joke.
As I pondered this weekโs WDYS #85 prompt from Keep it Alive, by Sadje, I reflected upon our family cat, Whiskers, who still resides with my ex-wife.
I did not have a cat growing up, so when we got Whiskers, I remember watching as she continuously scaled the (un)scalable, thus, masterstroke, and also devoured, well, food, that was not part of her diet.
For example, Whiskers once ate some left over pizza that had been left out. I found this out on my way to the bathroom in the middle of the night by stumbling across the completely empty storage bag, thus, practical joke.
That was fun.
Image credit
Iqbal Nuril @ Pixabay
On December 3, 2020, I wrote and posted the poem, Becoming, and then about a week ago I wrote another poem, yep, you guessed it, also called Becoming. Iโm sure this has happened to you, and it has for me too; yet, this time, I wanted to post the second poem as it is, title and all.
In a way, I think it is perfectly appropriate for this past year. A time of struggle, death, and extreme hardship in so many different ways; and a time of hope, life, and extreme gratitude. I am holding these concepts with you, and the space inbetween, as I present this second poem on becoming.
As I sit and ponder, and also wonder,
and, yes, sometimes feel flustered with
the emotions coming, all the while I know
Iโm becoming.
Something different each day, while sitting
in the midst of the presence of the thinking
and never ending feelings.
Itโs hard as the tears come,
sometimes itโs a trickle and not a flood. While
at other times, the flood would feel like a respite,
with the tsunami of tears pouring forth.
Sometimes itโs a song, or a quick flash
of a not so distant past. It feels, moves, and
pushes the limits of the pain I think is possible
to bear, and then just when I think subside is in
stride, I break again.
Darkness envelops me, and I bend over
the pain pulling me towards the floor, where
at times I feel like Iโll learn more.
Just lay there and be, and let the emotions
wash over me. One wave and then the next,
they pass through, and time becomes something
extraordinary.
And, yet, my dear, just like you, they stop coming,
all the while thereโs still more incoming. I pick myself up,
wash my face, and look at the person staring back
through the picture of my mirrored life forthcoming.
He wears a smile with swollen eyes, face damp
with the salted tears of years of trying. Yet, deep down
he knows, while trying is a piece of the whole, itโs in
the doing where the scattered fragments
become one, as we march towards
our continual becoming.
Have you ever considered hope and despair at the same time? Hm. Iโm not sure that I have. I would like to. Thoughts? Well, letโs do a cursory look, and see what we get.
In 4 Reasons Why Language Is Power, I wrote about the power of language. We donโt typically consider the power that lives inside the language we use. It is very important. It shapes experiences, expectations, and trajectories that we set our lives on.
Similarly, in The Social Construction Series Part 1: 7 Reasons Why Understanding Social Constructions Is Important, I wrote about the importance of understanding that all things are socially constructed. All of them. Hence, this post is also a social construction.
Yet, knowing this frees us from the fetter of worrying about attaching ourselves to social constructions, or concepts that we agree with or disagree with.
Translateย hopeย into Spanish
Translateย despairย into Spanish
Well, look at that. Hope is defined as a feeling of expectation and desire about a result. Hm. Interesting. And, despair is defined as the lack of hope, or lack of such a feeling of expectation and desire about a result. Mm, this will be fun.
If hope is, at least as it is defined here, associated with an expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen, when we hope we are essentially concentrating on a result.
And, if that result doesnโt occur? Then we may fall into despair, which is the lack of the expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen. The issue?
We cannot have hope without despair. They go together. If you can feel hope, then it is equally possible to feel despair. Not a problem. Important, however, to understand. Why?
Often, people get upset or frustrated when in despair. Yet, as we can see from the language itself, it is only natural. If you subscribe to the feeling of hope, then you will sometimes feel despair. And, vice versa.
Another way to think about hope and despair is as two sides of the same coin. The world is full of these opposites. Sad and happy, life and death, and so on. For the world to occur as it does, they are needed.
Yet, we can create more power over these concepts by understanding that they always occur together. Meaning that if you are sometimes hopeful, you will sometimes feel despair. It is a must.
When we understand this as true, we can shift our thinking, and mindset to incorporate this apparent paradox with a new understanding.
The new understanding is that these concepts are one. Think about the coin analogy Iโve used in this post. A coin is one thing, yes? Yet, it has two distinct sides; head and tales. Hope and despair are the same. As are all pairs of opposites.
When we expect hope, for instance, to show up more than despair. Why? Because then when despair shows up, we get down, frustrated, maybe even angry. Not helpful.
By accepting that despair is a part of hope, as sadness is a part of happiness, we increase our awareness about the fact that despair will come; and, guess what?
When it does, itโs okay. Itโs normal to feel despair sometimes. Just as itโs normal to feel sad sometimes. If you never feel sad, or despair, then happiness and hope will elude you. True.
It is also important to welcome despair as much as you welcome hope. Why? Because when we resist feeling despair, we avoid it. And, when we avoid things, we actually attract more of those concepts into our life.
I avoided sadness for such a long time, that I was often sad. Really. Did I look sad all the time? No. It was internal. Yet, believe me, it was there. As was despair.
Yet, when you openly accept that all feelings happen, you create a space to be with them when they come. No judgment. Being in despair or sad doesnโt mean anything.
You are not having โissuesโ because you sometimes feel despair. Funny how we create language around โnegativeโ emotions and associate them with problems. Not helpful. In fact, detrimental, and untrue.
When you are hopeful, notice. And, be hopeful. Be just as you are in those wonderful moments of hope. Or, happiness, joy, or elation.
And, when you are in despair, notice. And, be in despair. Be just as you are in those wonderful moments of having despair. Or, sadness, melancholy, or misery.
Our emotions come and go. It is important to expect them all to show up. All of them. And, to welcome them all. When we welcome them all, they stop having power over us.
In that moment of acceptance, we create a space to be with our emotions in a completely new way. Free of judgement and created meaning that one emotion is better, or should be more expected than another.
Remember that our emotions just are, and that hope and despair are two sides of the same coin. Just like the heads and tales of a coin, hope and despair are one.
Develop. Inspire. Transform. 