Life Craft

August, 2020

Conscious or not 

brain, heart and lungs 

keep us alive 

we can only craft 

our conscious lives 

to fit the moment 

plans for the next moment, 

day, week and into the future 

shaped one way, can change

at a moment’s notice. 

crying, grieving, stamping our feet

will only slow our next step. 

What will I do in my conscious world?

What will I do to flow through each day?

How will any of us know how to respond?

“Control of consciousness determines the quality of life.”

~ Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, psychology professor

 ~ The Psychology of Optimal Experience

Priorities

Temptation to change the world 

is merely a wisp of a dream,

too great a task, 

and too messy. 

I walked to day, 

just to the grocery store 

for my prescription refill 

and bananas. 

I added a Bosc pear because 

they taste good. Curious, 

I took my blood pressure - 

the machine showed ‘optimal’.   

Then I spoke to a cheerful pharmacy tech 

about the state of the weather outside. 

Paying my bill, I packed my groceries

and my medication into my bag, 

zipped up my jacket and headed home. 

I looked up to check the clouds ~ 

rain this afternoon or possibly this evening? ~ 

Three blocks to walk, I skirted all the puddles,

rain stayed in the clouds. Home safe and dry. 

Temptation to change the world 

is merely a wisp of a dream,

too great a task, 

and too messy.

“Action expresses priorities.”

~ Mahatma Gandhi

Shifting

shifting sands 

moving foot to foot

for balance’s sake

shifting winds 

sudden or slow emotions 

dates on the calendar 

shifting tides 

undercurrents 

no warning 

shifting perspectives

a subtle re-order

for strength in a moment.

“The map of what we call reality is an every-shifting mosaic of ideas.”

~ Marcelo Gleiser, physicist

Whatever the Answer

It confuses me when the order of things goes awry. Today sluggishness changed things 

without asking me. 

Not even a notification, 

a whistle or a beep ~ 

no manners whatsoever.

..the strange work of epilepsy, 

or is it long term medication, 

or could it be the effects of age, or…. already exhausted, 

I slip back into a snooze 

all my good intentions for this day 

pushed aside by whatever the answer is. 

“There is always the question why 

and there is always life, 

which doesn’t need an answer.”

~ Dejan Stojanović,

  poet, essayist, philosopher

At this Time of Night

April 2021

To write a piece of poetry 

at this time of night when 

there is little that has occurred 

in the day to warrant such writing. 

I could write about the whoosh 

of the traffic on icy streets, or

the soft roll of the bus as it stops 

to pick me up. Oh, the tall man, 

40ish, waiting for the same bus, 

not dressed for the cold, carrying 

a multicoloured skate board;

spiky hair and bejewelled fingers. 

he was quiet and not quite sullen. 

I could write about the swish of 

the dishwasher as it takes care of 

my days worth of dishes, including 

the bowl that held my bread dough 

in the fridge for the night.

But it is getting late and 

I have much to finish up before 

I greet my pillow. Hopefully, 

I’ll find some poetry tomorrow.

“I can feel my Thoughts

Tiptoeing about in their bedrooms

Getting ready for the night.”

~ Prudence Gager, Bedtime

No Particular Reason

For no particular reason

strawberry yogurt ice cream 

piqued my curiosity.

Scraping the bottom of a tiny 

tub of caramel ice cream, 

strawberries and yogurt 

floated through my mind. 

(both in the fridge)

On tomorrow's 'to do' list! 

After all, it is important to feed, 

not just my body, 

but my curious mind.

“The knowledge of all things is possible.”

~ Leonardo da Vinci

(1452~ 1519)

Shine

The sun was warm today 

no quarrel with wind 

that tried to snatch its warmth. 

It merely shone on its

scheduled pass around 

the globe. As I walked 

I tried to catch the warmth  

despite buildings of brick 

and mortar and bare hedges.

When I did, I stopped 

and turned my face 

to the sun’s golden glow.

“Birds sing after a storm; why shouldn’t people feel as

 free to delight in whatever sunlight remains to them?”

 ~ Rose Kennedy

A Feeling

Time to stop, time to go

Time to sleep, time to rise

Time to love, 

Time to be yourself

choose the time that fits 

a schedule 

the calendar or

our hearts, 

merely a knowing, 

intuition with no colour, 

no little bell that rings, 

no pop up flag, 

merely a feeling

too easy to dismiss…

“I believe in intuitions and inspirations…

I sometimes FEEL that I am right. 

I do not KNOW that I am.

~ Albert Einstein