Be Still... and know.

I don’t know any living thing
That can be purely still
Activity is frantic
At cellular level
The essence of self
Moves at speed
Like deciduous sap
Sustains life on the inside
While the outside keeps up
Bare appearances.
How can we know
Really know
When our stillness
Only heightens awareness
Of movement
Each breath an exchange
Of gas and pressure
While tympanic drums beat
To every small sound
Drowning out any hope
Of pure silence.

Perhaps the cessation
Of macro movement
Tunes in awareness
Of micro activity
A deeper trust dawns
In the beauty of life
Beyond our control
But certainly
In His.

Eclipse

I tried to stand tall,
stretching high as I could,
gathering all that I had
into one bright light,
holding it aloft
for all to see.
Perhaps,
if I tried with all my might,
I could be a beacon,
a lighthouse or
a spotlight,
but,
no matter how hard I tried,
all that I had,
the brightness of my shining,
was eclipsed by you.
It wasn't until I had
stepped down from the pedestal
of my own making
that I realised
that I was to reflect your light
not make my own.

Wasn't the moon amazing last night??? The weather here is just gorgeous and spring is on the way - feels more like summer already!

The morning after the rust red moon
Rose like Jupiter
behind the bare branches of willow
I saw the green
Emerging from ghostly tips
Glowing in the early spring sun
And promising
Life.

Wish I'd taken the photo!

The sunshine struggles to free itself
from the soft greyness that clings
to the sky.
Now and then a brilliant burst sends
shadows running across the patio
and the garden soaks in the unseasonal warmth.
So too my soul. Where dark, heavy clouds once
obscured my horizon,
now patches of blue peek through.
Peace has returned.
Over the coming days I will enquire of myself:
"Why the change?" There appears to be no answer.
Perhaps that is enough.
I will rest in the tension
and enjoy the glare.

Love shines on
The jewel in a crown
of thorns
The light in a night
of pain
Love shines

However dim my hope
Love shines
The hand at the end
of my rope
Love waits

And lifts
My failing faith

Stock photo

sometimes I wish that
I could be turned inside out
so that my thoughts
could be conversations.

I find myself constantly retreating
to an inner world
that is neither real
or exposed.

Those who love me
have to endure this
self induced solitude.

So, I wish I could be
turned
inside out
so my hiding places
could be shared.

Do you?

Gotta get out of my head...

Speculate
Analyse
Anticipate
Criticise
Ruminate
Diagnose
Cogitate
Presuppose
Contemplate
Theorise
Deliberate
Advise, surmise
Revise, reprise,
Again, again,
Again, again
Living in
My HEAD.


Art class (among other things) just doesn't work if you can't get out of your head...! Time to live by heart...

hope

I will speak soothing words to my fears
whilst waiting for the chaos to subside.
deep within there is a darkness
that is unsettling
and I struggle with this affliction.
to doubt one's own soul
is to challenge all there is about life and living
so, gathering what faith I have,
and laying hold of trust and hope,
I set my eyes again to look for your love's
changeless certainty.

through



there is profound epiphany
only to be found
on the other side of
being broken
that cannot be reached
if you go around








stock photo

Who do I believe in
and what need I do?
Can I believe without the evidence
that every word agrees
and every miracle is proved?
Must my prayers be triumphant
and I be pure
before my hopes be true?
Need my faith stand without
support for my frail and doubting humanity?
Am I able to receive
without working for worthiness
allowing my troubled soul to be adored by You,
the One who hears my heartcry?
Can I rest in Your love, and,
letting go of my expectations,
simply allow You to be?
Am I able to believe in You
as you are,
giving you the right of revelation
without interpretations of my own?
And,
can I answer every question with one word;
Grace.

Whatever it takes

Parenting a child with challenges is a journey taken one day at a time. Yesterday, a friend of mine told me that when her son was born, she said to herself "Whatever it takes..." As each new challenge arises she says it again... "Whatever it takes..."

When we began this journey
The steps were not in sight
We knew it would be difficult
But we did not think twice
Without a doubt, we said aloud
'Whatever it takes', we’ll do
For every moment is a gift
We’ll spend by loving you.

You’ve made us laugh and we have cried
But you have made us proud
Despite the pain you choose to smile
And live your life out loud.
We still don’t know the road ahead
But one thing will be true
Because you’re ours, no matter what,
Your Mum and Dad love you.


Read it again... it's about you too...

You make me laugh, and I have cried
But you have made me proud
Despite the pain you choose to smile
And live your life out loud.
Though you don’t know the road ahead
There's one thing always true
Because you’re mine, no matter what,
I'm God, and I love you.

God knows what is challenging you today...
you are His, and his motto has always been
"Whatever it takes"...