loridaily
notes from the heartArchive for nature
the Place Where the Water Meets the Sky
This place calls me
the place where the water meets the sky
where ancient voices call in the waves
in ancestral harmony
their stories written in the foam
their labors traded upon the tumult
their cries thundering and then evaporating upon my skin
the sky cradles and watches over
she hears the tidal voice
grow ever more complex from eon to eon
her clouds cloak her vast darkness
sometimes with playful cotton shapes
other times with brooding towers
only when midnight opens her gown
can her true self be seen
this place calls me
the place where the water meets the sky
where the water touches and reflects
in a dance with the universe
this place where the moods of lovers entangle
and the moods of The Creator inspire
it is in this place I cry my salty tears
they spill and mix with the tears of my ancestors
and my voice adds another layer of harmony
and I am one with all
in the place
where the water meets the sky
Lovely Maple
Quietly she reflects
on her life…
Each tiny babe she knew
through intimate birth
tiny buds who in their red spring bonnets
clung to her frame with eyes closed
their swelling shapes suckling
as she dug her roots deep
against winter’s shivers and frosty beards…
Her vigil passed
spring caressed her with his gentle kisses
She raised her eyes to the sun
arching as if to yawn and smile…
Like unfolding hands after fervent prayer
her leaves opened their tiny wrinkled palms
The earth bloomed around her in a radiant circle
she danced to the music
amidst yellow chatters and purple chirps
Festivals of color bloomed beneath her skirts
as every community in life celebrated…
Her hair flung free she swayed
Shading the ferns who thanked her with violin solos
Billowing in song as the birds adorned her every branch
with twittering gossip and fluttering comedy
Such fullness so perfect
her sap weeps through fissures like
the happiest tears of gratitude..
She remembers all she’s known
Her babes, their waving happiness
Friends she’s supported and protected
Roots entwined deep in the earth
sharing intimate communion and family devotion
Now, one by one
her children let go of their grip
they fly and dance
free from their tethers
she watches as
astonished eyes laud their daring performances
they take their bows
having given everything they could
and gather at her feet
ready to sleep in congratulatory piles
She stands nearly alone now
only the last ones await their icy taxis
before windy journeys to freedom
kissing each one before they go
she goes quiet
then for a while
Lovely Maple sleeps
Ecstasy
Petrichor and rain-beaten lavender
wafted through my windows all night in the sweetest heady plumes
–fingers sliding through windows, finding me in every room.
Velvety cool breezes caressed my hot skin that thirsted for more.
Thirty second low rumbles of slow rich thunder
whispered it’s seductive conversation in my ears with repeated intoxication.
Dancing cloud-to-cloud lightning shown so brightly
in greens and whites that the night itself was in afterglow.
The rain teased and then battered my world with it’s jingling chimes and throbbing drum beats.
I was breathless until sleep’s sweet demise could wait no more.
Oh ecstasy! You have made love to my senses until I am limp.
Hidden in Smoke
I miss the moon.
I miss the nights when he sings so loud that his trumpet voice shakes every south facing window.
I miss when he writes angled lines of bright white music on my floors in hopscotch grids that beg to be played.
I miss when I can hear him buzz in my ears like a chorus of swans in flight taking Lohengrin through the sky to his maiden.
I miss him illuminating my soul from his shimmering tower with boisterous laughter that lights up the universe.
I miss the moon.
meditation
In this one moment
I ride on the glassy surface
Where time floats away
And my emotions rise
I am reunited with my own soul
Who reaches to me from the source
She is full of love
Together we are complete
Pain becomes bittersweet
Artful brush strokes
That swirl in the water freely
And leave their shells in my sand
Life and purpose entwine
Intention and need weave together
In this one moment
I know that I am one with the tapestry of creation
By and By
I will wander my shores to the places you’ve been
As the gulls they gather and cry.
The sun as it rises shall be my best friend
‘Til I see you again by and by.
With all my heart I’ll long for you
Until the end of time.
We’ll dance and laugh ‘neath skies so blue
And share our love in rhyme.
I’ll follow along where the whispering foam
Kisses each trace of your stride
As each icy wave chills my feet to the bone
And erases your steps in the tide.
In the meadow I’ll watch the grasses gold
‘Til they hint at a form that had lain.
I’ll ease gently down where the blades do fold
And the sweetness of you remains.
With all my heart I’ll long for you
Until the end of time.
We’ll dance and laugh ‘neath skies so blue
And share our love in rhyme.
And if I should find a smoldering coal
I will know that it once burned bright.
For I shall feel the peace of your soul
As you sat in firelight.
With all my heart I’ll long for you
Until the end of time.
We’ll dance and laugh ‘neath skies so blue
And share our love in rhyme.
I will wander my shores to the places you’ve been
As the gulls they gather and cry.
The sun as it sets shall be my best friend
‘Til I see you again by and by.
Until the Day We See You Again
I walked by the harbor to see the small boats
They knew I was looking for you.
They sat all alone in water so grey.
I knew they were thinking of you….
I strolled the low tide and kicked at the rocks.
I asked if the shore had seen you.
The waves barely splashed and were brown and dull.
I knew that they longed for you too…
I asked the gulls to sing me the song
That you whistle to me when I’m blue.
They gave me a stare and quietly stood,
And I knew they were lost without you…
A whale burst from the shining sea,
She heard me starting to cry.
Out of the deep she sang along
Her voice was as sad as a sigh.
The pelicans flew in single file
And landed upon the grey swells.
The waves picked up and splashed at my feet
depositing tiny shells.
I walked beside the water’s edge,
beneath the purplish sky.
One by one, men in small boats
Rowed out and gathered nearby.
And from their boats they waved and they called
“We’re here!”, “We’ll wait with you too!”
The pelicans floated much closer to me
And that was the moment I knew.
That all of the Earth and all of the sky…
The waves and the rocks of the sea…
The people and animals gathered around
To keep watch and to wait with me.
I’ll wait for you until you come.
The world will be at my side
Until the day we see you again.
Sail home to us safe in the tide.
Autumn
He kisses Summer,
her long tresses
angled and golden
drape across her body
in prayers of gratitude
He embraces her
in a dance of whirlwind whispers
Their wings blaze
His eyes glow
more crimson than love itself
He prepares the night
in his multicolored coat
rearranging her children
until they settle to sleep
ready for snowy blankets
Apples of Blue
When a boy becomes,
through time’s make-up,
a man in suit and tie
his cartoon monsters
stored on stacks
of yellowed pages die
His little red shoes
no more to play
in muddy puddles deep
he settles in
from nine to five
with appointments he must keep
My wish for such
a tender lad
is simple and it’s fair
for I believe
in such a boy
who’s hardly lost his hair…
He must listen
to his heart
and follow every trail
through the thick
and jungly pass
to imagination’s vale
He must pursue
and keep alive
the flame that lights the way
the boy inside,
though tall and tough,
must resume his play
His heart is tender
I’ve no doubt
for I have seen his soul
but his inner boy
is crying there
within that manly role
On this day
of blessing sweet
vow to open the heavy gate
and run so fast
to find that girl
who is your heart’s playmate
she knows the garden
full of magic
where monsters come to life
where apples of blue
and songs in flight
can melt away your strife
Upon this day
this very day
to celebrate your birth
She waits for you
in a fairy place
to share her guileless mirth
Best Effort
one only needs to look to nature
to be reminded that we recreate ourselves
again and again
what was our best for a past moment
will give way for what will become our new best
there is no shame in the flaws of our existence
each marred leaf
each dimpled petal
each bent stem
is but an expression of our trying to grow
in a world of unseen challenges
dedicate your life today
to the creation of beauty
that is your best effort for each moment
with honesty, humility, and joy
loridaily 