Sometimes I just like to read poetry out loud to myself. There is something about taking words and spinning them together and then speaking them out loud that just delights me. In fact, every time I write a poem I read it out loud several times before I am satisfied with the final result.
Today I write to share with you a few pieces I have written about this very sweet and very ordinary life.
In the past I have spent an awful lot of time TRYING to find adventures. To do extraordinary things and escape the ordinary dullness of day to day life.
But as I've gotten older and especially since becoming a mother, I've become more comfortable with the present. With the simplicity of the ordinary and the slowness of life.
These poems were written years ago, but still stand as quiet markers of ordinary magic. If, like me, you're stuck in cold weather and hopefully cozy at home in this deep freeze, make yourself a cup of tea and settle in to read some poetry.
Try reading some of this poetry out loud to yourself, feel the words and listen to your own voice moving within you. Notice if the meaning of the words shift as you read it out loud.
This Moment This moment holds a growling stomach and the faint edge of a headache on the rim of my mind the wildness of not knowing settled by the sound of breath inhaled and exhaled in This moment holds the image of a steaming cup of tea--pen searching on paper cool light filtered through a dirty window and the buzz of a text message unread in This moment is wild and uncertain with the memory of grief and high delight-- holding on to the silence of a still sleeping home Thank you impermanence anything is possible this constant flux is the only surety I cling to because in this moment of delightful insecurity everything is possible Poetry Ghosts glimpses of poems gaze upwards from pools of water, and rippling puddles on the path teasing the corners of my eyes ghosts of poetry rattle and moan in the roaring winds and the quick zephyrs tickling my lips as the frost crackles underfoot snippets of sentences and words snap into the air free to clutch at my ears how is it that so much depth can be mined from one string of words? simple blue words, pulled from the raindrops dusting the earth and fogging the gray sky unfurling petals reveal metaphors that even the youngest can understand everywhere there are hidden poems tucked out of reach only waiting for the moment to leap and seize an authors pen driving the ink to give shape to otherwise ordinary moments will you watch for the usual to spring into unusual beauty - jolting into wakefulness or will it wake you? Morning Thoughts Moments after sleep That foggy feeling Of almost but not quite Enough sleep Keeps my eyes closed. A last attempt to hold On to the warmth And peace of Sleep. There are so many thoughts Bumping around in my brain. Lists, dates, and numbers. Hopes, goals, concerns. I’d like it if my thoughts took turns Stood in line nicely Taking a number and waiting Their turn to speak but those thoughts like clouds move quickly across this expanse in my mind and the wisps trailing after are fragmented by my sunlit eyes
And here are some links to poetry that I love to read out loud:
And this incredible series of poetry and art is also a delight to explore. You'll even find a new poem by yours truly in this series:
In deep appreciation for your words, your energy, your vulnerability...
Thank you for sharing.
And thank you for sharing my words once again.
Wonderful thoughts and poems Raine! I am presenting poems next month to a group of women and I am thinking of presenting your poems to them. I think they will love them.
Thank you for such beauties!
Teri