>>>What I have found, however, is that the more I share, offering my work as freely as I can to the world, the more I am called back to the page, back to the vulnerability of opening myself to whatever wants to move through me.<<< Dear James, bowing with joy to the force... that keeps on calling your voice forth - inviting the voices of others (mine included) to spring forth as well. Flowering takes so many forms :>)
My first bedroom wall poem at age 8, with my tracing of the Statue of Liberty, Emma Lazarus', New Colussus. "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free..." My great-grandmother heart is breaking for those who are no longer welcomed nor free. My outgoing phone calls have been frequent these days...taking action against injustice. My practices are focused on prayers of protection.
an interesting perspective james on our value of longevity and its association with strength/worth. if something fails to live very long, it therefore must be frail. if something is able to sustain itself much longer, it must be strong. who declared this to be true and more importantly, why have we decided to believe such a lie?
Spring does feel like such an awakening. I want to be outside in the dirt every moment I can steal. Thank you for the reminder to lean into what makes us come alive.
At one church I served there was a crack in the sidewalk and every year a petunia would come up and bloom but petunias are considered annual flowers and but somehow it kept reseeding itself. Persistence.
Jasmine’s tiny yellow stars that were closed only two days ago today shimmer on the hill in my Zen garden…promising abundance of all we cannot yet see. Thanks James for your poems
James, your writing feels so natural and good, like breathing clear, fresh air. Thank you for this inspiration 💜 💖 that I need on so many levels today. 🙏 Holly
To watch a srtem of plant life push through tough ground is to believe in our own power to push through a world that seems too tough to withstand sometimes. But it is those times which strengthen us, giving back our power to live abundantly joyful.
I appreciate this post so much. At our church on Sunday, the speaker talked a lot about creativity and the sharing of our gifts, and he mentioned how we need to ask ourselves whether WE enjoy the gift we are sharing, or if we're just doing it for the benefit of other people. This is what your post reminded me of: how, as we share with the world, we are in the process called back to ourselves and to the gift itself. Thank you for the poem and your reflections on it!
Thank you, James, I needed to read these words today as my mental health dips again. Wild flowers have always been my favourite.
Thank you for your willingness and bravery to show up to the page, you inspire me to do the same 🙏🏻💛✨
Wishing you peace & ease, dear Natalie.
>>>What I have found, however, is that the more I share, offering my work as freely as I can to the world, the more I am called back to the page, back to the vulnerability of opening myself to whatever wants to move through me.<<< Dear James, bowing with joy to the force... that keeps on calling your voice forth - inviting the voices of others (mine included) to spring forth as well. Flowering takes so many forms :>)
This part stood out to me as well.
I love this! "Flowering takes so many forms." Thank you for that reminder, wise one!
My first bedroom wall poem at age 8, with my tracing of the Statue of Liberty, Emma Lazarus', New Colussus. "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free..." My great-grandmother heart is breaking for those who are no longer welcomed nor free. My outgoing phone calls have been frequent these days...taking action against injustice. My practices are focused on prayers of protection.
an interesting perspective james on our value of longevity and its association with strength/worth. if something fails to live very long, it therefore must be frail. if something is able to sustain itself much longer, it must be strong. who declared this to be true and more importantly, why have we decided to believe such a lie?
beautifully said, and asked!
Spring does feel like such an awakening. I want to be outside in the dirt every moment I can steal. Thank you for the reminder to lean into what makes us come alive.
Choose the light’s delight,
open to the elements.
Worth taking the chance.
At one church I served there was a crack in the sidewalk and every year a petunia would come up and bloom but petunias are considered annual flowers and but somehow it kept reseeding itself. Persistence.
Oh my goodness, that petunia is a poem in and of itself!
Jasmine’s tiny yellow stars that were closed only two days ago today shimmer on the hill in my Zen garden…promising abundance of all we cannot yet see. Thanks James for your poems
and for poetry’s promise.
💕💕💕
James, your writing feels so natural and good, like breathing clear, fresh air. Thank you for this inspiration 💜 💖 that I need on so many levels today. 🙏 Holly
Your kind words mean so much to me! I do try for clarity and presence in the poems.
‘to spend even just one day, a single hour, exposed to the light we chose.’ So beautiful, James. I feel this yearning!
❤️💝
To watch a srtem of plant life push through tough ground is to believe in our own power to push through a world that seems too tough to withstand sometimes. But it is those times which strengthen us, giving back our power to live abundantly joyful.
…exposed to the light we choose.” Bingo, James!
I appreciate this post so much. At our church on Sunday, the speaker talked a lot about creativity and the sharing of our gifts, and he mentioned how we need to ask ourselves whether WE enjoy the gift we are sharing, or if we're just doing it for the benefit of other people. This is what your post reminded me of: how, as we share with the world, we are in the process called back to ourselves and to the gift itself. Thank you for the poem and your reflections on it!
Thank you, James.