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Bottlebrush and Greyhound

There are times when I long to move beyond the edges of myself as when, this morning, alongside the power station fence, I passed under a red cloud of bottlebrush flowers dripping nectar in a frenzy of birds feeding on the sticky clusters overhead, too high for me to reach and plunge my hand deep into the pure joy of that crimson feast. And when a greyhound, let loose from its leash, ran past me with such speed and grace, I longed to be its stride, the power propelling it across the grass and into the distance, turning in the wide arc of its own happiness. I would have given anything to dissolve into its bounding freedom, undone from my leash of old age and the slow shuffle of aching feet. There are times when I long to move beyond the edges of myself, if only for a moment.

Copyright © | Year Posted 2024




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Date: 4/24/2024 9:00:00 AM
Paul, we have a dog and that 'wide arc of own happiness' is perfectly captured within your words - the delight encapsulated in your description. Maybe it's in your delivery, but I stand by your side so frequently in your poems that they are more like a magic transportation spell. The wish of 'oh to be that happy!' hopefully we all still have our moments but we are lost in them at the time and somehow don't spot our own pure joy when we are lifted out of any hardship and just be for a while.
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Paul Willason
Date: 4/25/2024 6:32:00 AM
Good to hear I captured the movement and mind of the dog...we once had a greyhound....such lovely companions. Always a pleasure and honour DD to have you accompany me on my little walks, your comments always a treat to read. Thankyou my dear friend.
Date: 4/24/2024 5:28:00 AM
Hello Paul, I felt a profound sense of longing for liberation and transcendence. The imagery of the bottlebrush flowers, dripping with nectar as birds frenzy overhead, evoked a visceral yearning to break free from the confines of the self and immerse in the pure joy of nature's abundance. I loved how in these moments, you have captured the universal longing to transcend one's limitations, if only for a fleeting moment, and experience the boundless expanse of existence. - Blessings, Daniel
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Paul Willason
Date: 4/25/2024 6:26:00 AM
As always Daniel a thoughtful, sensitive and almost forensic summary....my gratitude for the time you kindly give to this and my other poems in reading and providing such informed commentary. Sincere thanks.

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