Monthly Archives: March 2026

saving daylight

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Through the miracle of the clock
We strive to move a bit of sunlight
To the other end of the day.

Our bodies
And our babies
And our pets 
Comply more slowly
Having other ways 
Of experiencing time.
But they adapt.

The cows in the field
Don’t even notice.
It is not a change for them.
Nor for the crickets
Or the owls
Or those pesky barn swallows. 
They continue to dance
Within the arms of another.

While we are torn away
To march with commerce.
We sit within the steel frames 
Of our creations,
Obedient to the demands
Of our responsibilities.

Our possessions
Which, by that same mechanism,
Have somehow turned 
And seem to possess us,
Claiming the bulk of our time. 

So, each spring we lose an hour
Only to find it again in the fall.
And we carry the facsimile of control
Into one more year.

Sometimes I envy the cows.

photo by marneejill retrieved from Flickr per cc BY-SA 2.0

gift

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hand holding flower
What does it take 
To receive a gift
Graciously,
Fully?

It takes attention
And an open heart.
It means suspension of judgement,
Looking away from my gain
To your generosity.

The object in your hands
Is not the true gift.
It is the offer of your attention
Calling to mine.

It is your heart, whispering …
‘I want to connect.
I want to honor 
Your presence in my world.’

It is the open palm,
The heart extended,
That whispered longing,
That holds the beauty. 

And to give a gift?
You must release it, tenderly. 
It is an offer
Not a consummation. 

When a gift is truly given
And received fully in return,
Two hearts are exchanged.

photo by Eva retrieved from Flickr per cc BY-NC-SA 2.0

enough (again)

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Enough!
I can no longer watch the news.
Reporting catastrophe 
And catastrophe to come.

My heart is worn out 
With borrowed distress 
And requisite panic
And inevitable dissolution

And the ones who claim to save me
Only send me further into the abyss
Feeding me fear and guilt
And hopelessness

The monster has come out of the closet
And seated itself beside me on the sofa
It is picking its teeth,
Having fed itself upon my soul

The powers that be 
Seem all too powerful ...
But are they?
The whisper of that very question
Brings a breath of hope.

When I think that I must save it all – 
Democracy, my nation, my community
And, of course, my privileged place within it
My arms are much too small.

But when I remember 
That my friends are here beside me, still
Their presence holds my heart
And their eyes speak tender affection.

They remind me that the furor around me 
Cannot steal my capacity 
To share beauty and laughter and love
Or even to share comfort and grief

And it is 
Enough.

Image by Jeremy Brooks retrieved from Flickr per cc 2.0