Layers

Layer upon layer, each layer

of my unending horizons

washes over me

teaching me that I am more,

so much more

than my struggles

clarity, corrected vision

encouragement even

that yes

I can embrace a sense of hope,

and I have

a future.

By God I do.

Poetry and Image © Copyright, 2022 rivers renewed

Advertisement

The Hue of Purple

I wondered, in this tinge of pink, in this hue of purple

what the poetess would contemplate

in the ocean

seeing, more with the heart

could she hear the music

in the waves?

would whale bones speak to her?

no God would condemn

such a soul that loved the mysteries

the vastness of everything

whose being

was awakened

by the sun.

Note: Dedicated to the memory of the wonderful poetess Mary Oliver.

Mary lived for a time in Massachusetts with her partner Molly Malone Cook. Molly was a photographer and at times took pictures of famous people.

Mary’s poetry speaks to me due to her observations of life and nature, and how she feels about being alive. Currently I’m reading her book Why I Wake Early. It is filled with light, and I always feel lifted when I read her work. I highly recommend it.

Peace.

Poetry, Narrative and Image © Copyright, 2022 rivers renewed

Where I Live Now

Did I move to another site?! No. Did I migrate to Twitter? Nah! Not interested.

However I wanted to share where my poetry and other writings come from. In my heart I do seek renewal, wholeness, and the beautiful healing of nature simply because…..I know what broken is.

We all have tragedies that take place in our lives and Rumi wrote about brokenness being where the light comes in. I know what this is like for sure!

My wife almost died from cancer years ago, and she has had cancer several times since then but a different type. Or rather what she had morphed into tumors. She still receives treatments today.

I remember her being in ICU the first time around, her kidneys were shutting down, and she had several heart attacks. It was not looking good. Pain and grief almost took me down completely. I was terrified for years.

It was a blood cancer, in other words the cancer was in her blood. She did recover from that and she’s a walking miracle. Thank God! Now though she deals with tumors.

Yet I want that light that comes through brokenness. I embrace it. Even through other tragedies I seek light that comes through, bringing healing.

The other area my writing comes from is love. The love I have for my wife is incredibly and wonderfully powerful. Love also motivates me in my faith towards God.

I want you to know I am a person of faith, but we are not a part of the far-right weaponized mentality that is destructive. You will never get a Christmas card from us holding assault rifles or shotguns. We would never do that.

Our faith is one of peace, love and tolerance.

So to summarize: my writing comes from embracing the light that comes through brokenness, great love, and faith.

This is where I live now.

Wishing you peace.

Writing and Image Copyright © 2022 rivers renewed

The Scent of Water and Trees

There is a warm breeze now, slowly pushing its way over the lake,

holding a scent of water and trees, coming to rest

on my face. I look up seeking the revelation of sky in my life

never ending yet within my soul, I reach

for the pen that’s filling itself once again.

I marvel at words, trying not to gasp

holding the photograph

in my mind, I begin again

to write.

Poetry and Image Copyright © 2017 2021 rivers renewed