Poetry for Scientists
------------------------------- 7/4/04 The slow morning mist hangs heavy silent still; not even insects bother... A loud meandering synapse leaves behind this trail of graphite. ******* Simple Gestures 4/8/2000 Every Spring the trees celebrate and throw their arms up to the sky in greeting. And every Spring the sun answers and sends down blossoms. As Mother Earth serves up the northern hemisphere in homage, nature, blazing with full attention, leans in a little closer and in a light green whisper plants a kiss on the sun. Blessings answers the sun, blushing bright red. ******* 4/4/2000 Raindrops form puddles in my back yard, reflecting the sky back to itself. Tiny flashbulbs go off recording each drop's welcome home. The rain sings its song in one long exhale: a quiet that permeates silence. In their long fall, none are broken. ******* Slow Green Betrayal February 16, 2003 She acts non-chalant, unconcerned. But I know she knows exactly what's going on. Sunlight bounces off the snow, rushes thru the window and tickles her underbelly. She holds back laughing, but pines oh so in-con-spic-u-ous-ly. Slowly, slowly, slowly she inches away. I give her water, but she pays no attention. Soon I will mean nothing; this room, nothing. Look at her peering out the window pretending not to listen. ******* The first rays of the morning sun make magic of the forest. Overheard in the writer's mind: does anyone know where we're going? Cast the stones, read the cards, consult the charts... are there no shortcuts? ******* Hot Pneu Haiku 12/25/82 Sun and snow play mist rising for the sky, heaven and earth do their stuff. ******* 1978 Wintering Spring, hidden source of all, blessed by thy mothering wing, alas but for the Fall, that stops thy living heart to beat, that hangs thy breath in toll, and yet another Spring will flow out of the icy cold. ******* Changes Mushroom: I rot and others live eating my body. I eat theirs as well. This isn't death. Spiders attach their webs to me, collecting dirt and dew. I decompose under their clouds. A mushroom is lucky to be, becoming all things a little at a time. Decay brings on celebration. Others look more beautiful, even when they change. I don't mind, I'll change too. ******* This is the end of the Poetry for Scientists column for now. 7/21/16 |
Poems from the Heart
------------------------------- 5/30/04 The birds are sanctifying their day. Chirping wildly they sing goodnight to their daily benefactor; the same light they'll greet in the morning. If all the voices everywhere sang together, every sunrise, every sunset, a never ending chorus of greeting, glory and gratitude... ******* Special Delivery 8/24/07 After we learn how to live, we may learn how to die. Breathing in and out the moment, what more can we do? This isn't cause for sadness, it's how heaven is brought to earth. ******* Turning Into 9/21/07 We pass though the light orange, red, yellow-- our bodies aglow. Those who turn full toward illumination, shine head to toe, back to front, and reflect the warmth of white heat. ******* Carver 7/15/07 Without knowing and without will the wood becomes beautiful. We become whittled and polished, whittled and polished, until we become great beings, clear, solid and balanced. ******* 2004 Trade up. Find a God who likes people. ******* Worship 10/4/07 One might awaken to a koan, a cane to the back. One might open nourished by kundalini, or prayers to the Lord. Prayers, recitation, whirling... some may light candles. Drums are beating, and there's dancing. Sitting by the ocean, lying in the forest-- many gazing into each other's eyes. ******* Rich Earth 3/29/08 The riches of the world are within the heart. With roots there, the mind awakens and blooms, turning the body into a garden. ******* 2/5/08 What you think about others affects you first. See the good. ******* 1/18/08 Enlightenment is in the next moment. In order to catch up, we need to stay put. ******* Creating Heavens 1/4/08 If all the good people of planet earth got together and loved real hard, we could create a whole new planet to evolve to next. ******* Proof of God if God is Love 1//11/08 Some creator exists that put love in our hearts. What reason? Love in our hearts, what for? Some creator loves us into existence. ******* 11/13/07 All the people we judged harshly here on planet earth, we get to defend at the Pearly Gates. ******* Calling Rain 11/21/07 The old men had rocks, sacred stones,. they gently placed in a stone bowl, then bathed them in blood and potions. They spoke softly to them... Stones, non-descript, common. They wash them carefully, mumbling. We gracefully grant them their superstitions and the outside chance of rain. We have our own stones. ancient gems holding many prayers.. Dazzling, mystifying, we speak to them, sometimes aloud. There is thunder. ******* Prayer Dear God thank you for the blessing to complain. ******* 10/26/06 Buddha pointing to a flower answers the question: what is enlightenment? Didn't say a word, didn't pluck it. Just pointed. When the kicking and screaming are dragged to a goal not of their choosing, much is trampled underfoot. He could have said, nourish the life that springs up within you, or see enlightenment for yourself, or don't become Buddha, become yourself, the sun. ******* |
Observations
------------------------------- Which Came First? September 1, 2001 The chicken or the egg? It stands to reason that a chicken can't just appear. It stands to reason an egg must come from somewhere. Men and women, cats and dogs, it's all the same. Millions of years of evolution got us here. Is there a secret hole in the earth from where we came? Creators are silent, artsy types. They fill worlds with anonymous works, and never reveal technique. Is it enough to appreciate in wonder and not analyze? No, that isn't our way, we want answers. Was it a loaded chicken? ******* Which patriotic song gets sung after Armageddon? Just curious. ******* September 11, 2001 Eyes Wide Shut Tuesday opened eyes and closed minds. ******* September 10-19, 2001 The sky is always perfect, especially with clouds. Perfect blue, perfect black, yellow sun, white stars. Not this week. Clouds made of straight lines, right angles, strange colors. A Mother worth her salt knows when trouble's brewing. Sometimes she speaks in the words of clouds: odd shapes, misplaced hues. These aren't cotton candy, nor cotton puffs, neither cumulus, nor cirrus, this is war. ******* September 14, 2001 Thorns high at the ready, two roses battle, determined to rip each other's head off. Why do these soft children hurt so? Thorns blazing, they count their paces. The other path is to protect your brother now, friend to friend. While some are distracted loving, others came to take life away. Why can't the beauty of the roses be enough? Red velvet petals curl and fall... Roots drinking from the same spring, and yet they fight. They share each other's breath, but who listens? The vase is very fragile, and we all know what roots can do to stone. ******* The Solution September 19, 2001 One day everyone who wanted to fight gathered together in a giant arena, their side, our side, everybody's side, and fought it out, till there was only one left standing, and the rest of us jumped in and loved em to death. ******* Meditation September 2, 2001 A river brings down small pieces of the earth to this bypass in the dam. Some stop to become green again and again. The fresh river moves on to begin again and again. ******* September 5, 2001 I'm a teacher. I roll boulders uphill. Sometimes students, sometimes parents, but mostly the system. When left alone, we cartwheel downhill, leaving only children, laughter, and learning. When education grows a heart, children will grow real legs. ******* Lighten Up One cloud, and it's a dismal day. A single drop of rain, and it's a deluge. A wisp of wind, a hurricane. Flames, fire; a bed, a pea. Little things set big things in motion. A singular incident gets wheels turning, legislators writing, laws enacted. A world of the trespassed, whiners and litigators. Forgive, forget, let go, chill out, lighten up. ******* September 28, 2001 There are words that have never been placed next to one another, but then how are we to know? |