24 Poems ~ 24 Hours
It Came At a Price
Femininity is not all about being the prize of someone
Eye candy doll, Marilyn Monroe, my dear.
You were so much more then wind swept skirts and “bedroom eyes”
Norma Jean to the truest, the ones who knew her (hardly it seems) these days:
Fascinating influential, book-smart, even in the streets.
I’ve head it’s important to know the lay of the land, how things work, where to go,
and the arrangements of all that lies on the terrain.
When you set out on a new journey, you want to know
what the distant, foreign earth offers to a stranger,
convenience stores, gas stations, rest stops, restaurants, hotels, visitor centers,
and the habits of the people inhabiting the new land.
In a forest, the land sprawls at will, its own patterns and logic.
The denizens of the trees, owls, woodpeckers, aphids, and bark beetles,
fauna of the forest floor, deer, slugs, frogs, salamanders, and hares,
inhabitants beneath the soil, earthworms, moles, nematodes, mites and rotifers,
they know how the land lies, but does the land know me?
Mother earth swallows me just as she devours the sky; she harbors my scent,
tastes my fear, sweats my nightly dread, sees the heart beating underneath,
her brown arms’ embrace taking me home, the cellular root, where we began.
We’ve dreamed the garden dream for so long,
six infinite-feeling years in a desert town
have finally ended, and dreams can root and grow.
Connection to the earth began for me decades ago,
a broken child seeking an anchoring tether
and finding it in the minuscule but richly complex
backyard world of plants, earth, bugs, and birds.
Healing began there, and finally finished in adult gardens,
at peace with my hands in the earth and sun on my back.
Now more than ever, as disease and warfare push
stress and strife in our faces, I long to make things grow.
I will pass on that love and knowledge to my children,
secure in the thought at the end of my days
that they can feed themselves and generations to come.
They will gather the future fruits of the labors we begin today,
and feel my love for them, growing and alive, all over again.
* Inspired by Robin Wall Kimmerer’s quote: “This is really why I made my daughters learn to garden-so they would always have a mother to love them, long after I am gone.”
The Forget-me-nots have spoken to me to not forget the little things.
The Roses taught me that even a single word can show sincerity with love, hope, and joy.
The Poppy with the many shows the hardships which many have struggled with mentally and physically.
So many flowers show me so many things and taught in subtle ways.
Listen to flowers they have many lessons to give others.
(using prompt 14)
By Sandy Lender
It occurred to me
How amazing God’s love
That when He formed the world
When He molded the Earth
With its hills, valleys, rivers, streams
He elected to let Calvary stand
It occurred to me
How amazing God’s grace
That when He shaped the clay
Smoothing its imperfections
Perhaps He paused over the lump
Where He allowed Calvary to stand
It occurred to me
How amazing God’s plan
That despite our hatefulness
And the horrors we inflict daily
Upon His world, His son, His creation
He made a way to let Calvary stand
If you ever feel lost
don’t forget where you are.
This earth is your home
with its guides near and far.
You can follow the river,
or look to the sun.
See the way the grass blows.
Follow deer as they run.
Wherever you are,
is where you’re meant to be
Whether on terra firma,
or exploring at sea.
You are not lost,
you are found and embraced.
You are never alone.
You’re in just the right place.
By Ajanta Judd All Rights Reserved – 12 pm Australian EST
Prompt 14: In her wonderful book Braiding Sweetgrass, Robin Wall Kimmerer writes — ‘In some Native languages the term for plants translates to “those who take care of us.’ Use any part of this quote (with credit), or the ideas it contains as a jumping off point for your poem this hour.
“The land knows you, even when you are lost.”
____________________________________________________________________________
{Eternity’s End}
I close my eyes and you’re there
Vast and immense, a constant presence stretching to eternity
When I feel lost or troubled, I reach for you
Your solidity is edifying, I am grounded and whole again
I open my eyes and you’re in that transition between ephemera and eternal
between void and fullness, where there is not knowing.
The trees and plants sing me into their wholeness, cradling me with beauty
They bear witness to the passing years, offering majesty and reverence
I take a leaf out of their book, seeking equanimity and flow.
Seeking to live within the natural laws of a land who harbours deep intelligence.
I look to the horizon vast and wide as an ethereal sky lingers over the canopy.
For you my love I will stand on the precipice, soul laid bare, arms outstretched,
resolute, waiting for you, seeking solace in your treasure trove of wonders.
I will return to you where the essence of your ancient heart imbues me with love.
I will return to you when I am no longer breathing.
I will return to you until eternity’s end.
It started with a fire
Blazing hot brutal devastating
howling winds with forked tongues
licked flames
kicking them higher
melting metal shattering glass
obliterating concrete
human screams lost in raging infernos
crawling across the planet
all was charred all was scarred
a wasteland
Time passed
It started with the seeds
tiny sprouts pushing through
deep dark well rested soil
stronger than before
spreading leaves extending branches
smiling at the sun
showering in the cooling rains
birds chirping bees buzzing
visiting newly blossomed flowers
sucking nectar spreading pollen
Mother Nature hummed and mused
It was time to bring them back
the flora and the fauna
all except the humans
there was no longer any place for them
in Paradise
“In some Native languages the term for plants translates to “those who take care of us.’ ” — Robin Wall Kimmerer
Grandeur is neither in size or vibrant colors,
but the nobility of essence, growing from grains
into wholesome life.
Welcomed, peace, with its lessons,
finds its home
in the stem of our being.
Speak to the grounding spirits,
and sing then, the needs unearthed in its reply.
Feel potential,
in its blossoming birth,
describe a life always meant to be lived.
Thunder rumbles in the distance
I remember
Claps of thunder waking me from a dead sleep
Lightening snapping
The hot smell, the sizzle
The electricity charging the air
I remember the clouds swirling
Twirling,
The sky turning a sinister green gray
Shifting the world
From a warm summer’s day
to a frightening night
Huddled in basements
I remember cold so bitter
My snot froze
Ice coated windshields
Frozen fingers and toes
Thawing by the heater, numb
I remember my dog jumping on my lap
Thunder making him shake and shiver
Giant softball hail breaking windows and pelting cars
I remember excesses
Tornadoes leveling neighborhoods
Trailers twisted
Debris flying
An ice storm so bad power went out
Poles downed from the weight
Whole towns closed
Streets undrivable
I remember flooding
Underpasses closed
Basements full
I remember lightening flashing like a strobe
Through sheets of rain
Glad to be safe, in the middle of the ocean
Lightening an interesting phenomena no one fears
Rain is just rain
Snow is an anomaly
Not an ice storm to be had
Just palm trees sweeping the sky
The wind gentle and kind
High tides just enough
To delight the surfers