Mandalas

The Hawk


I looked outside my window
At the cold, gray day.
A snow patch huddled here and there,
Adding to the sad display.
Sparrows flew in anxious flocks,
Seeking shelter in the pines.
A hawk came down from leaden skies,
And sat upon a naked branch.
He watched in silence, still and proud,
Then swooped upon the twittering crowd
Of tiny, unsuspecting birds.
One creature less would join the flock,
The hawk would have his evening meal.
Life is lost, life is sustained,
To be re-created again and again,
Throughout the vastness of eternity,
The hawk, the sparrow, flying free.
2003




Stone


History is written on the stones,
That mark the graves of lives destroyed
For power, for gold, for one man's throne.
The wind and rain have left their mark
Upon the granite cold and stark.
A name that once was life and love
Lies silent 'neath the mourning dove,
While time continues on its course
To conquer kings without remorse.
The sound and fury was for naught,
It should have been a lesson taught.
The wise man learns, but fools rush in.
Once again, the tale begins.
2004




The Front Porch Glider


Tonight, the wind
Swept the rain across the street.
My Lion Dog and I
Watched the scattering leaves,
From our glider seat
Upon the porch.
The street lamp cast a glistening glow
Near pools of water lurking
On the darkened sidewalk and the curb.
We sat beneath the porch and vines
That twined in twirls above our heads,
With outlines of the grape vines,
Like cutouts in the window light.
We were dry, but not for long,
As gusts swept raindrops on our bower.
I murmered softly to my dog,
"The wind has changed direction now,
And autumn wants to enter."
Reluctantly, we left our seat,
To leave the wind to grace the hours.
2005




Slower Pace


Yesterday, I shook hands with JFK.
Yesterday, I left home for college and was frightend,
And hopeful.
I was on my way.
Marriage, babies, a war,
Work, death and loss,
Weaved in and out of life's colored cloth.
Days became years, years wandered past.
Time was either too slow or too fast.
There were times when I whispered:
"This, too, shall pass."

Grandchildren make me smile,
Butterflies will,
And chickadees on my windowsill.
I visit Mother's grave on a hill,
Under a tree, and tell her she left me
To carry on.
I've made a small garden there behind her stone.
You can do that in country plots.
She loved gardens,
Smiling in a light, spring breeze.
So do I.
Aunt Rilla and Aunt B rest nearby.
They gave me roots.
Their memory lives on
In irises, in roses and in tiny, budding shoots.
When I go to join them, when the night bird calls,
Remember I loved children, cats and dogs,
And, "all creatures great and small."

Remember me when you see
Hollyhocks and lilacs.
Remember me when you see bright, October skies.
Until then, know I wish you peace,
I wish you joy and grace.
Now that I've turned sixty,
Let wisdom guide my slower pace.
2005




Waiting


Snow covers the ice
Of ponds that lie silent
In a frozen night.
Saturn is bright in the black, eastern sky.
They say its rings are made of rock and ice.
The thought of that offers no warmth.

I try to dream of crocuses waiting,
Waiting to push through the hardened earth.
Hope is like sunshine, patience is all.
My memories bring forth a burst of poppies
By a roadside waving,
And purple iris by a white farmhouse.

Mother and I walked in the field,
Sunlight streaming down on clover,
As we headed toward the winding creek
To watch sunfish dart among the ripples.

At last, I feel warmth within.
Now memories wrap my soul in sunshine.
The rings of Saturn spin and spin,
Trapped in gravity's cold embrace,
While I am flying free on wings of hope
And love remembered.
2006




Whirligig


Whirling through eternity,
I came into the light,
And laughed and danced to heaven's tune.
Aha! I shouted merrily,
So that is it! That is the answer!
I am one with all that was
And is and ever shall be.
We all dance together,
Wind and fire, air and earth, stars and oceans,
Whirling, twirling
Dancing through eternity.
2006




Dancing Leaves


I watched the leaves dance in the dusk.
They whispered in the evening wind,
And waved their last goodbyes
To a softly fading sunset.

My garden wears golden shades
Of autumn's kiss,
While shadows deepen as I sit
In silence and at peace within.

This moment is a gift to cherish,
Tucked away with sunshine days
And moonlit scent of yellow roses.

I'll open up my treasure box,
When heavy skies of gray press down,
As gloomy clouds begin to gather.

Once again my inner smile
Will come to me with memories
Of autumn's dancing leaves.
2007




Frustration


How can I change the world?
Oh my, that does sound grandiose.
A world where greed controls the game.
It always has.
It stays the same.
Thousands die for wealth and power.
Like marionettes on tightened strings,
They dance the dance
But do not sing.
One less prayer,
One less song,
In the end, they go along.
So where can I raise up my voice?
Do I even have a choice,
Against the call to senseless death,
Against the tide of mindlessness...
How can I change the world?
There's only one way I can see,
Although so small,
It still must be.
The change should surely start with me.
With love and peace
That rules the heart.
There is where we all must start.
2008




Circles and Cycles


Running in circles
Usually means
We have no direction,
We're lost in the din.
Yet life is a circle,
A cycle that spins
From birth to childhood to adolescence,
Adulthood, middle age, at last golden years.
We pass through each phase with our losses and tears.
We pass through each phase with our yearnings and dreams,
Weaving within us what each phase means,
While spinnning and spinning a thread that is strong.
Not fearing our autumn,
Not grasping for youth,
Nor chanting the could haves,
would haves,
should haves,
Still seeking and pondering each inner truth.
Sweetly, we'll treasure the day's setting sun,
With smile lines so gracious
And gray hairs well earned.
We share what we know,
We value what's learned.
The houses, the cars, the vanity clothes
Mean less now than kindness and caring that's shown
in holding a hand,
in sharing a loss,
in kissing a baby,
in bearing a cross.
The scent of a flower,
A breeze in the night,
The chirping of crickets,
Dawn's glowing light.
We welcome the showers as spring turns to summer,
And summer greets fall,
Winter will come, but then comes the thaw.
While the cycle keeps running,
The wheel ever spins the threads that are woven,
Again and again.
2008