Permission to Grow

May 6, 2020May 6, 2020 becomingandbeholding3 Comments

With an abundance of time,

I can get a bit lost.

I am used to being driven

by duty,

with all its necessary tasks

keeping me busy.

But I am not so needed

right now –

or so it seems.

Reluctantly, I learn to be grateful

for the quiet,

the stillness that is always underneath.

I sit and open to it.

Once rested and

pretty soon,

my eyes begin to catch a vision

while my heart bubbles forth

with an effervescent song.

Its music is an invitation to grow –

to gather all the pieces

and moments

of wisdom, pain, and insight that

have been stacking in the corners –

to sit with them

and to honor their sacredness.

As I look back to review them,

the melody of their song

begins to weave together.

It travels in and through me,

bringing lightness and energy

to my searching heart.

The music floats up into my awareness

and sings to me:

You know how to knit all this together.

Trust what has been given to you.

The words form into a melody

only I can hear.

I can see now that

there is a song to be born, and

I have been invited

to sing it.

My feet become light

as I learn dance

to a new tune.

“To love someone is to learn the song in their heart and to sing it to them when they have forgotten.” – Arne Garbing

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No Mud, No Lotus

April 16, 2020 becomingandbeholdingLeave a comment

Poem · Poetry · Uncategorized

Nevertheless, Spring Forth!

January 10, 2020January 10, 2020 becomingandbeholding2 Comments

The weight is heavy –

this boulder on top of you.

It came out of nowhere!

You are stuck.

Never before have you felt such a hard, unrelenting blockage.

This rock is cold.

This pain is real.

It is time to hunker down

and see who is with you –

to be reminded that you are not alone.

Your roots reach to touch others

who share your dilemma,

your pain.

As the seeds within you

fight for survival,

you dare to stretch.

You find another.

Together, your reach is stronger.

Together, you find a community –

one that works together

to search the cold surfaces

to find the cracks.

For, no matter how hard the rock is,

it is no match

for the faith of a community

that seeks the light.

Your strength is in knowing that

the light is always there.

It cannot be extinguished –

no matter how big or daunting

the rock is.

Therefore, bloom!

Do not give up.

Reach for the light together.

Crack that rock apart

and let the strength within

spring forth!

You have it in you –

for you were born to find the light.

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Entering the New

October 28, 2019 becomingandbeholdingLeave a comment

Poem · Poetry · Uncategorized

Mosaic Moments

September 13, 2019September 13, 2019 becomingandbeholding2 Comments

Transitions increase a felt wistfulness.

We look back

and long for

what worked before.

Those pieces of us that

like routine and

the comfort of the predictable –

well, those parts feel sharp

in such seasons –

the edges hurt.

And yet, there is the buzz –

the bubbling energy of the new,

of possibility.

There are new faces to greet,

new tasks to learn and

fresh ways to open the heart

and to be.

Life is

as life does-

and its mysteries inspire and instruct.

Its best when

there is a mix of things

for the creative touch of God is genius

and multi-dimensional.

So, even when loss

is the larger piece at the time,

there will always be the sparkle

and felt presence

of grace, of love … even joy.

When awake,

we can wonder at and

give thanks for

the whole design of it all.

We see our piece in the creation.

Gratitude for Anne Lamott and her coining of the term, “mosaic moments” in her recent book, Almost Everything.

Poem · Poetry · Uncategorized

God’s Reach

August 11, 2019August 11, 2019 becomingandbeholding2 Comments

Sometimes I feel as if

I am in a favorite pocket of yours.

Once and a while,

you reach in and touch me –

and I am remembered again.

You may adjust me a bit,

smoothing my edges and

moving me about inside the pocket,

your touch comforting

as you bring me to new places

for my learning.

When the moment is right,

you lift me up and out

and I feel the rush of freedom knitted with

the warmth of grace

as you hold me in your hand.

You look at me,

and I look at you.

And I remember again

what home feels like.

Then you place me back

into your pocket

for easy reaching later.

I am your treasure

and in your keeping –

you keep me safe from harm.

One day, I know

your lift up

and into the light

will mean I get to stay.

My vision will be clear then

and so will my reflection

of you.

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The Art in Stepping Aside

December 11, 2018 becomingandbeholdingLeave a comment

Poem · Poetry · Uncategorized

Lighted From Within

November 26, 2018November 27, 2018 becomingandbeholding2 Comments

Oh, the view that blesses

when the horizon glows

whether morning or evening.

The bright moon in the distance

also inspires

as it illuminates the soul.

Seeing light from a distance

is an invitation

that instructs…

For I can wander in the darkness

for days

or even months…

but when the light enters in

from afar,

a new energy

begins to germinate again

as its beams touch me.

I become sprouted and fed –

even if only for a bit.

These glimpses provide for me.

As I grow and heal

and new branches form –

stretching me beyond

all the ways and limits –

daring to ignore the broken places –

the glow given grows.

I know healing has arrived

when I have less need

of the horizon

and all its sparkling colors.

Sure, the hues and brilliance

still are a gift and reminder…

They show me what lies deep within me –

the colors that shine and beam

through me

in a never ending way.

I am lighted from within

and I know where to look

when I need the horizon.

Poem · Poetry

Entering the Dance

August 21, 2018August 21, 2018 becomingandbeholding3 Comments

When the winds are shifting,

and change is here,

I sometimes shudder with

fear, which blankets my heart

in a covering so itchy…

the restlessness it brings

grows like a cancer,

consuming health.

I wonder out loud,

and through every pore –

my cells scream

No!

The resistance builds a wall

around my soul,

and I begin to hide.

I grieve…

the tears wash over

all the tensions and aches,

bringing yet another baptism.

Eventually, I remember

that changes bring a

kind of birthing process…

and I know there is

something beautiful coming

after this pain.

I love how tears

release and inform

all at once – as if

we must break, deeply –

apart and before

we can be refashioned.

These very insights, eventually

bring gratitude.

I know,

it does’t make sense

to the logical mind…

but it is the dance of Spirit

within and beyond me.

When I learn to

accept the invitation to

the dance of life,

letting go of my need to

lead it,

I get lighter on my feet,

and my being

finally hears the music

and is wrapped in comfort

and delight.

I am set free.

Poem · Poetry

Each One, A Mountain

August 11, 2018August 11, 2018 becomingandbeholding2 Comments

Everyone has something…

It is a mantra that is inwardly voiced

more and more

as I get older.

We each have our own brand of challenge.

As life progresses,

these challenges unfold

and introduce themselves.

Sometimes they swallow us up

with the force of a big ocean wave…

Or, they might creep upon us

like a spreading mold.

We get to choose

how to respond

when our personal mountain

shows up.

For some,

the mountain may be too vast

to climb alone –

so we bring loving souls with us.

For others,

the mountain may be a series of hills

which warrants a solo journey –

each vista building strength within.

We may fool ourselves, thinking

that our mountain

is bigger than anyone else’s –

that somehow,

our mountain warrants

special attention…

But as we mature,

and build our climbing muscles,

our compassionate heart opens,

our personal nature fades,

and our vision widens

to see what others endure.

Our climbing becomes

the road to awakening

to what this life

is all about.

Yes, we each have a mountain –

especially designed for our own unfolding…

but as we meet it,

with grace and courage,

the vista that comes,

connects us to the

suffering of others.

This is the stuff of

a life well-lived.

So, I bow to my mountain –

giving thanks for its lessons…

for without its presence,

I would walk with blinders on,

tripping on my own feet,

and all alone.