I reach for the horizon of awareness,
A distant sun just beyond my grasp,
I stand at the shore of this vast ocean,
Ready to wade into its depths,
Unsure of how far the tides will carry me.
First, I must still the winds of my mind,
I close my eyes, and a storm of thoughts swirls,
If I could catch just one drifting leaf,
I might find the gateway to the infinite sky.
Next, I surrender to the night’s embrace,
To fall asleep with a mind like a placid lake,
No ripples of thought to disturb its surface,
Half-awake, I float through misty dreams,
Echoes of desires yet to be fulfilled.
The third step, perhaps a posture of grace,
To bend and breathe in harmony with the earth,
To let my spirit rise like morning mist,
Touching a realm where all is serene,
Only to fade as daylight returns.
I drink from the wisdom of sages and saints,
Their words flow like rivers, soothing but fleeting,
Perhaps I should journey to the valley of compassion,
Lend a hand to a fellow traveler on this road,
Maybe then, the path to consciousness will reveal itself.
We often hear
Smile, God loves you.
We send emojis of smiley faces
There are stickers of them
We draw them on paper
But the truth is
No one can measure
The worth of a face
That carries a smile
It gives light in the darkness
Warms the soul
In a gentle way
Whispers all is well
So my friend
Keep smiling
The world needs it
You never know the
Difference it might make
To a fellow traveler
Who has a frown on their face...
The ancient slivered
white moon piece
hangs webbed,
Quite entangled
in the unyielding wintering
of maple's stark branching.
As watch watching does he watch,
that thin silvered white moon crescent,
seeing all from his high perch,
His ancient partner,
the weary beleaguered planet
Earth, slow-roasting
from green
to tan
to brown,
Barbequed by fellow traveler,
the well-respected
Mr. Sun.
On cue
God his purpose is elusive
What is actually his role?
In our lives and in our planning
What good is worship as a whole?
Don’t we long for independence?
Why would this start up a fuss?
Why should we give God the power
To decide what’s right for us?
We don’t want to be directed
Why wait for his sign and cue?
We could use him as co-pilot…?
That’s the least that we can do
Mind you, we will give the orders
We’ll do exactly as we feel
And when it gets a little tricky
We might scream ’Jesus take the wheel!’
This doesn’t mean that we are cowards
No, it means we have a choice
For in a fair collaboration
Every partner has a voice
Equal say and equal privilege
And we claim it, it’s our right
But we want God to be ready
To find a cure for every plight
Until then, he should be quiet
He should utter not a word
We’ll appreciate his presence
Even more if he’s not heard
As we brazenly continue
See us veer and see us swerve
As our silenced fellow traveler
Waits for his cue to come and serve.
Wendy Nipas
Studies his subject intensely
Like watching a dance
Each move remembered precisely
Taking a ready stance
Quietly and concisely
Evaluating the circumstance
Friend, foe, relative, stranger
Fellow traveler on life's road
A challenger of danger
Or one he desires to know
Thief of culture and exchanger
Maybe a warrior on a rainbow
Requires a curious mind
To study such a subject
And leave preconceptions behind
Watchful eyes that suspect
Or to recognize in kind
Someone worthy of respect
So his gaze does not cease
He prepares himself for war
All the while in hopes of peace
Or to tally an ancient score
When threat is gone, tensions release
And his patience the reward.
It stretches mind to understand
How telescopes are time machines,
Have God-like powers quite profound,
To plumb sky depths like submarines.
To go where no man’s gone before,
To see a past that’s clearly been,
Discover facts before man’s birth,
Track photons in brave’s moccasin.
Light travels fast but stars aren’t close,
The nearest stars “light years” away,
So thinking you know they exist
Is really gross naivete.
A “nearest star” could die tonight,
Man wouldn’t know for four more years,
With super bright decaying flash,
A fellow traveler disappears.
Expanding shells of photon waves
Man thinks is star, just light from star,
While unbeknownst to human eye
Their fiery sire is now sidebar.
If speed of light hides past so well
Can telescope help us to know?
Well yes, but in another way,
For human eye sees mostly snow.
Where telescopes see stars, though dim,
Our bare eyes fathom mostly cloud,
As onion layers peel away
We learn much more what is allowed.
Each layer reveals history,
As ancient records birth things new,
How telescopes are time machines,
Not books, but God's dreams come to view.
Brian Johnston
December 15, 2016
In the midst of the
asphalt homeland
One does see
Some natural life at times
As I sit on a bench
in a park
on the Lower East Side
a squirrel comes by
with a shining eye
This squirrel decides to approach me
Hoping for a bite to eat
His bushy tale is gleaming
and I am glad to see his bright eyes
I become elated
So I watch the squirrel
and feel a little guilty
that I haven't fed him
Another day in the asphalt homeland
Made a bit brighter
by a fellow traveler
on this long journey
into the unknown
In the shadow, behind the tree,
on the meadow, bend your knee,
down the valley, up the stream, flat bedrock,
hear me scream, bellow the heavens, toward hell,
dark tunnel, wishing well; fellow traveler listen well,
no chance given, could you tell,
on a knife-edge, head or tail?
Within the quiet of the night,
amid the shadows of my pain,
the strength I held so fast to,
ebbs, as another tear does gain.
With out the giving of consent,
it brings forth a fellow traveler.
To follow a chaotic coarse,
across my cheeks, twilight pallor.
Bare of conscience thought, I brush aside,
the meaning each holds alone.
I hide behind my false bravado,
as my tears dry on their own.
I had this feeling just today.
Had to walk outside, feel the sky
with my eyes... In This Way...
"Unlock"... okay, I said.
Love, the voice in my head.
"Come..." and a.Way it lead...
Glancing around now, to the Tree.
Are you there honey bee?
Hark! An Owl and dear, can you see?
Is the platypus still swimming, Mr.e?
"Check the date". Check to Mate.
How can it all be just so?
A name, the game, voices flow...
with planets, stars, crystals and cars.
~So who's the pet?
Khet.... maybe. Riquochet
crazy. ;) Strum the guitars...
wow! this is even a little bit hazy.
In the fuzz, we can see everything.
Within Love the bubbles sing,
Shuddlebug, got me by the wings.
Ping! ~Can you fly this thing??
Whistling.WordsWing...
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