Holding Hands

October 22, 2019June 6, 2021 becomingandbeholding1 Comment

Like trees sharing the same forest,

we reach for one another

as we bask in the light of life.

In moments of ease

and in times of stress,

it really does not matter which –

I love when our fingers are entwined

and I can feel the warmth of you.

No words need to be spoken

so we can do this lovely action

even in public.

All that is needed is the touch of skin

and the wrapping of fingers

to affirm our connection.

We are in this together,

you and I.

We have journeyed together enough now that

my soul has memorized the

contours of your hand

and how sweetly mine fits within it.

I shall carry you with me always

though all kinds of weather

and even when we are apart.

For your hand is now imprinted

on my heart.

Poem · Poetry · Uncategorized

Like Me

July 17, 2019July 17, 2019 becomingandbeholding3 Comments

Like me,

I bet you don’t like to be

inconvenienced by illness or stress.

Like me,

you probably aim to control and manage

everything in front of you.

Like me,

sadness is not an option

you would choose.

Like me,

your busyness gets in the way

of your experience of peace and

even love.

Like me,

your striving and perfectionism

puts you in a box

which limits spontaneity and joy.

Like me,

your thoughts drive you

and mostly go unnoticed.

But also like me,

you are growing in awareness.

Like me,

you don’t give up.

Like me,

laughter and health

bubble forth, anyway.

Like me,

you are a Velveteen Rabbit,

and you are being loved

into being made more real.

Like me,

you are learning the

gift of surrender.

Like me,

grace finds you.

Like me,

you are grateful for it all.

In peace,

my spirit bows to your spirit.

We are one.

And you are like me.

Poem · Poetry · Uncategorized

When Loved Ones Return

December 23, 2018December 23, 2018 becomingandbeholding2 Comments

Its a strange gathering –

all of us in our cars at the airport

anxious and watchful for that familiar smile and gait

to be seen among the masses…

Everyone is searching for that connection

to home.

It is like the perfect metaphor for life…

for daily we get lost in the crowdedness

of others in our space

as we journey anxiously –

searching and expectant –

until we are finally recognized, and

our place in the midst of it all

is secured.

We understand where we belong.

Now parked and watchful –

cell phones busy with directions,

our eyes finally meet.

Once bags are stowed,

and the heated car is filled,

the lively chatter of connection begins.

We navigate the traffic,

and reach the hearth and tree alighted,

exhausted in a happy way.

My daughter releases her bag to the floor –

“I didn’t hug you yet.”

Arms wrap around,

and eager hearts touch.

Christmas has arrived.

Poem · Poetry · Uncategorized

I Can See Who You Are

October 30, 2018November 11, 2018 becomingandbeholding1 Comment

We hustle.

We bustle.

We cover up.

We avoid.

In the constant press forward,

the moments are lost.

When able to still ourselves,

we can catch glimpses of

what is real.

I sat with a patient,

one of the sweet ones

with dementia.

Her eyes alive

with love and openness…

Her speech cute and senseless

most of the time.

I am present to her

and focus on being –

instead of doing.

When the time for goodbye comes,

I touch her shoulder

and lean in.

Her eyes widen

as these words spill forth

in clarity and affection:

“I can see who you are!”

Grace finds me

and I am blessed by her glimpse.

I am reminded…

I am Love.

Poem · Poetry

Gradually Getting It

May 9, 2018May 9, 2018 becomingandbeholdingLeave a comment

Here is the nub of it all:

Like a white birch tree,

along a rocky shore,

I am most beautiful, healthy, and free,

when I am part of

the whole picture,

blending into the larger scene.

Standing alone,

while interesting,

makes the tree more

vulnerable to the wind and weather.

One has to ask,

What will happen if I drop my striving and planning?

More and more,

this question arrives, and

I dare to loosen my grip,

embracing the magic

of trust and letting go –

I follow inspiration,

and stop making it all

about me.

Poem · Poetry

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

Eyes of Love

December 2, 2017 becomingandbeholding1 Comment

You look so put together

with everything in place

and sparkly.

You are a treat for tired eyes.

But I know better

than to be fooled by the surface of things.

Sometimes what appears on the outside

is the opposite

of what is on the inside.

We are crafty in our hiding ways.

So I open myself up

to the depths of you.

My eyes look past the veneer.

We could pretend –

play a game of make believe

and pretend the surface

is all there is.

It is, after all,

how most of us operate.

We barely even look at each other.

But who wants to live like that?

It makes my heart ache

at the thought

that what we see

is all there is.

No.

“Go deep!”

This is the call of the heart

and the work of Love

in our midst.

I will always be willing

to pull back the pretty curtain

and dare to see

what is true within.

Otherwise,

what is the point?

I am here for you,

ready to see

and to listen.