In school I was never a fan of poetry and it wasn't until my Dad passed away that i started to find solas in it and understand it's importance a bit more. Now I own a couple of books on poetry from some favourites. Never in a million years did i think that would happen! My dad loved poetry and of course was very proud to come from the hometown of a very famous poet, Francis Ledwidge.
I read recently that the arts are so important because in times, when we go through major life stuff they can be the thing that connects us back into our source, higher being, origin of creativity. What we have come from. I hope this is making sense as I write it! We are alI creative beings because we have come from a source of creativity - spirit, god, gods, goddess, source, universe, nature, higher nature whatever you want to call it. Like we were created from something. The arts are like a little spark the reignites us.
I started reading poetry and using it in class when I began sharing restorative yoga. It was inspired by one of my teachers Judith Hanson Lasater when I went to one of her trainings and at the end of the day she would ask us if we wanted to hear a poem and it would often be something she wrote herself. Wonderful!
I have even written a poem! I wrote it for Gateway Women - a community for people who find themselves involuntary childless.
So, to follow are some of my favourites that I recently shared on Silver Island during the week long Rest and Restore retreat I do there every September. Enjoy.
You are not your age, nor the size of clothes you wear,
You are not a weight, or the colour of your hair.
You are not your name, or the dimples in your cheeks.
You are all the books you read, and all the words you speak.
You are your croaky morning voice, and the smiles you try to hide.
You’re the sweetness in your laughter, and every tear you’ve cried.
You’re the songs you sing so loudly when you know you’re all alone.
You’re the places that you’ve been to, and the one that you call home.
You’re the things that you believe in, and the people whom you love.
You’re the photos in your bedroom, and the future you dream of.
You’re made of so much beauty, but it seems that you forgot
When you decided that you were defined by all the things you’re not.
Promise Yourself
Christian D. Larson
To be so strong that nothing
can disturb your peace of mind.
To talk health, happiness, and prosperity
to every person you meet.
To make all your friends feel
that there is something in them
To look at the sunny side of everything
and make your optimism come true.
To think only the best, to work only for the best,
and to expect only the best.
To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others
as you are about your own.
To forget the mistakes of the past
and press on to the greater achievements of the future.
To wear a cheerful countenance at all times
and give every living creature you meet a smile.
To give so much time to the improvement of yourself
that you have no time to criticise others.
To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear,
and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.
To think well of yourself and to proclaim this fact to the world,
not in loud words but great deeds.
To live in faith that the whole world is on your side
so long as you are true to the best that is in you.
She let go. Without a thought or a word, she let go.
She let go of the fear. She let go of the judgments. She let go of the confluence of opinions swarming around her head. She let go of the committee of indecision within her. She let go of all the ‘right’ reasons. Wholly and completely, without hesitation or worry, she just let go.
She didn’t ask anyone for advice. She didn’t read a book on how to let go. She didn’t search the scriptures. She just let go. She let go of all of the memories that held her back. She let go of all of the anxiety that kept her from moving forward. She let go of the planning and all of the calculations about how to do it just right.
She didn’t promise to let go. She didn’t journal about it. She didn’t write the projected date in her Day-Timer. She made no public announcement and put no ad in the paper. She didn’t check the weather report or read her daily horoscope. She just let go.
She didn’t analyse whether she should let go. She didn’t call her friends to discuss the matter. She didn’t do a five-step Spiritual Mind Treatment. She didn’t call the prayer line. She didn’t utter one word. She just let go.
No one was around when it happened. There was no applause or congratulations. No one thanked her or praised her. No one noticed a thing. Like a leaf falling from a tree, she just let go.
There was no effort. There was no struggle. It wasn’t good and it wasn’t bad. It was what it was, and it is just that.
In the space of letting go, she let it all be. A small smile came over her face. A light breeze blew through her. And the sun and the moon shone forevermore.
Just for now,
Without asking how,
Let yourself sink into stillness.
Just for now, lay down the weight
You so patiently bear upon your shoulders.
Feel the earth receive you,
And the infinite expanse of the sky grow even wider,
As your awareness reaches up to meet it.
Just for now,
Allow a wave of breath to enliven your experience.
Breathe out whatever blocks you from the truth.
Just for now,
Be boundless, free,
With awakened energy tingling in your hands and feet.
Drink in the possibility,
Of being who and what you really are,
So fully alive that the world looks different,
Newly born and vibrant,
Just for now.
