It Happens…

May 1, 2018May 1, 2018 becomingandbeholdingLeave a comment

….. if we are one of the lucky ones, that is.

We get older.

When did this natural reality –

with wrinkles in the mix,

become a source of shame?

I admit it,

I struggle with the mirror.

We, me and the mirror, have a daily dialogue which

is too personal to share…

For this reason,

I try to keep my glasses off

when near a reflective surface,

like a mirror or window,

that is how silly of a woman I can be.

I am angry that I was taught

to be self-conscious, evaluative

on a daily basis.

Why do we do this to women, to girls?

I marvel how men could care less.

Their freedom is awesome

and also more affordable.

And as a spiritual woman,

I am embarrassed I still struggle with all this.

I know I go deeper than all that.

So, I am learning to embrace my wrinkles,

and all the rest of it –

as a woman in my fifties.

This is just another example of

how I must get out of my own way

in order to be

the wonderful creation

I was meant to be –

so I can be free, too.

Therefore,

give me laughter,

give me love,

give me purpose,

and humility, too.

Bless me with health.

That is all I really need.

I will take care of myself

as best I can,

and let go of the rest

with grace.

Life is way too short

and I know too well

where this all heads.

But I am not there yet.

My wrinkles tell a story…

the story of me.

Amen to that.

Vitamin See

April 26, 2018June 14, 2018 becomingandbeholding1 Comment

Pay attention to what you bring into view

but fret not too much

the ingredients on the box.

Nourishment is more than simply

what you eat or drink.

Have you noticed lately

how the trees are bursting?

Is the sound of the sea echoing in

your mind and your heart, too?

Have you touched a hand lately –

really held it ? The warmth of another

traveling up your arm and straight into your soul?

Our minds are so full and busy,

we open our eyes and barely see,

we breathe but only a little –

just enough to keep going,

but not enough to be present.

Take a walk outside.

Let the sun bathe you,

the trees whisper,

the birds perform their dances,

all for you.

Go barefoot on the beach

and sink a little

into the comfort of being held

by a Love much bigger

than your great imagination –

a Love that holds you up.

Can you hear the quiet of the morning?

It holds the soft hum of Life itself.

This is how to cleanse:

nourish yourself with awareness,

with trees and soil,

with touch.

Poem · Poetry

Giving Voice

April 8, 2018April 8, 2018 becomingandbeholdingLeave a comment

When a situation suddenly

and without expectation –

turns

in a healing direction,

your heart wants to sing.

For you had lost hope,

and could not see

what you could do to

help.

And here it is –

the needed change

on the way…

The joy of it is

bright.

Your gratitude starts to bubble

up.

It starts deep in your stomach,

then springs to your heart –

opens it wide,

and sets it on fire.

Next, it flies up through your vocal chords,

making sweet vibrations.

It is a song that

must be sung.

So, on the wings of a grateful

heart,

your song passes

through your lips and

dances off your tongue:

“I SEE YOU.”

Poem · Poetry

We All Die Our Own Way

March 30, 2018March 30, 2018 becomingandbeholding2 Comments

We may wither and bend

like a broken flower,

close to life gradually

and fall quietly,

nourishing the life around us

as a life well-lived.

Or, we may get chopped down

violently, like a tree in its prime,

shaking the foundations.

How we die

is not up to us.

“I thought it would be easier somehow,”

said the patient.

One wonders if

the amount of presence we give to

the life we have now

informs and shapes

our own death, which waits…

It seems a courageous choice

to consider.

Poem · Poetry

Pure Presence

March 25, 2018March 28, 2018 becomingandbeholding3 Comments

You look at me with eyes of love

and complete attention.

You gracefully place your body

next to mine,

molding into me

for complete contact.

There is no space between us –

only pure presence.

As you relax and soften,

so do I.

Your purr

motors my heart to joy.

Your headbutts

nudge me firmly to awaken

to the affection in this moment.

Your eyes,

your eyes…

invite me to deepen

and embrace the music

hidden in my heart.

You bring God to me

and I am blessed.

I love you for that.

Eventually, you move away

to what is next for you.

Your work is done.

Poem · Poetry

The Body Knows

December 10, 2017December 10, 2017 becomingandbeholding1 Comment

Oh, the tattletale that lives within

that whispers all my secrets!

I wear my thoughts and habits

visibly

and in the sea of tension

that seems at constant

high tide

filling up all my spaces

and flexing my muscles

long after their work is done.

Reversing this tide

and harnessing my inner moon

is a daily task

that calls –

like music calls to my heart,

or insight calls to my pen.

I have to ask myself:

What is this inner grip, this tension

really all about?

I have a magic tool

which will help me to know.

I stop. I breathe. I listen.

The body knows.

With amazing patience,

it waits for me.

Poem · Poetry

Under the Weather

November 11, 2017November 11, 2017 becomingandbeholdingLeave a comment

Nothing like a virus

to help you appreciate

normal breathing.

Wheeze, sputter

blow, cough.

Normal comes to a stop.

Voice exercises?

Ha!

Good luck with that.

My pipes are clogged –

making my voice

sound like a cat about

to hurl a hairball.

Hydrate, hydrate.

Rest and sleep –

Being sick sucks.

I am not good

at slowing down –

interrupting my patterns.

I prefer to stay on track

to be in my well-crafted groove.

Huh.

Damn.

Maybe that is the point.
More tea, Honey?

Poem · Poetry

Interdisciplinary

October 18, 2017October 18, 2017 becomingandbeholdingLeave a comment

It takes all of us
to bring you home;
to follow your lead
while you demonstrate what you need –
how we can help.
Sometimes you don’t know.
After all,
this is a first for you.
We understand.
So we show you the way.

At first,
it is all about the pain
in all its potential forms
and impact.
Then it is
all about the Love –
given and received
over a lifetime
and in this moment.
We help unwrap
how Love endures
through it all.

We have travelled this road
with so many.
But no one is
exactly like you.

We are here.
Right next to you.
Each of us tasked
with a different
aspect of you –
the whole picture of you
and the life you were given.

As witnesses to your
soul’s journey,
we catch merely a glimpse
of the mystery
ahead
that calls to us all.
Thank you for that.
The comfort flows both ways.

We will never forget you.

Poem · Poetry

Morning Walk

October 18, 2017October 18, 2017 becomingandbeholdingLeave a comment

We are built to move
the way a bird is built to fly
or a flower is built to bloom.
Sleep has a way of stiffening us –
setting us in our ways and patterns
long in place –
like a mold we conform to.
Heck,
the couch can do the same
as it swallows us.
But a morning walk
can loosen
broaden,
unfold and inspire.
I literally start my day
by moving forward.
I spring out of bed
for this.

Poem · Poetry

Blessed Assurance

September 27, 2017September 27, 2017 becomingandbeholding2 Comments

No more a need

to solve, cling, or do.

I am done with all that.

Breathe.

Just be.

I turn my attention outward

trusting that inwardly,

I am whole.

This is an important shift

and not one that is

familiar –

a down shift,

into trust –

rather than constant acceleration.

True freedom comes in

letting go of the wheel,

not needing to see the road ahead.

Gradually, I am learning to be

more of a passenger.

It is strange how unfamiliar it feels.

I have learned so deeply

to be on my own,

driving solo.

But I repeatedly follow the wrong directions

being the simple human

I have learned to be,

confused by which GPS to heed.

Now I call upon my divine nature.

It has taken decades to

own it.

Such a beautiful feeling…

to know it is not all

up to me –

that no map is needed.

A look back

in the rear view mirror

confirms.

All is well –

and has been all along the way.

Blessed be.