PAINTINGS & POEMS
On these pages are the pairing of my paintings and poems. My practice has been to write a poem and then hold the poem in me as I paint. Yet life is in flux and the formula doesn’t always happen that way. More and more the poems and the paintings come in the same week or month and I get the feeling that they belong together. I read the poem to the painting and if I get the chills, I know it’s right. I hope you can sense the belonging.
EMBRACING ETERNITY
Embracing eternity
I take the path
into the unknown
with deep secrets
and vanishing horizons,
the feeling
of never arriving
because there is no place
where eternity lives.
It is a depth
that can never be reached
a longing
that is never filled
an entwining
that can never be close enough.
It is the endless journey
of life creating itself.
SPRING CAME
Spring came
as they said it would.
Out of the ashes
out of the dust
out of the air.
Scars remained
and landscapes changed.
People left
as nighttime laid heavy
on the hearts of those who lost.
Spring came
and branches
burst forth their blooms.
Days got longer
and bird songs filled the air.
Spring came
with the anticipation
of the bite of the first garden
as if through it all
something there is
that always
stays the same.
TO MY ANCESTORS
To you, whom I did not know,
To you, who took the steps
to create your future
to carve a new path as your world
turned upside down.
To you, who left your country,
your soil,
to brave the seas
and take a chance on life —
to start over
to have hope
to linger in thoughts and dreams and aspirations.
To you, who created the footsteps
to continue life
to want more
to nurture and bring forth a new generation.
To you, who let me be born
out of the desire of the human soul,
I thank you.
LOVE WAITS ON WELCOME
Leave room for empty spaces —
the ones not filled in
with every moment.
The pause between notes
where music dwells.
The breath of air
free of its past.
Enjoy the bird’s song
without knowing what bird it is.
Smell the fragrance
without naming it.
Let the mind sit
unattached, uncontrolling.
Let lots be vacant
appointment books unfilled.
Leave room for the unexpected
and time to welcome love.
INSPIRATION
You came to me this morning
out of nowhere.
Floating into my brain
landing fully formed
as if I breathed you in
from the generosity of the air.
Everything around me knew you had arrived.
you swirled me like a tornado
into a frenzy of creation.
Yes, inspiration, you have come
spontaneously and unpredictably
consuming me with your disruptive ways.
Leaving no stone unturned
or dish washed
Yet always a welcomed visitor.
THE ROAD TO NOWHERE
A happy ending seems unnecessary
when the journey is deep.
When stars awaken you
and love strikes a path.
When silence happens
at any time.
When you fall away
into his arms,
into another world.
The sun within you rises.
You slow down — only for a moment —
but you know you can.
You feel the life you want.
You can breathe it,
almost taste it.
It is not a means to an end
but a path full and rich.
A trek into the unknown
with no light to shine the way
yet every step knows where to go.
There is no happy ending
only a road
speckled with beauty
and trust
and faith.
TURNING POINT
When everything is lost
we realize there is something
that cannot be lost.
Something we have never seen
or touched,
something we cannot name
but we can feel.
It leads us on.
A resilience comes from somewhere else
and we know we can make it —
because there is no other choice
than to rebuild and start again.
But it is not from scratch.
Our depths have been challenged
and we will never be the same.
And when a community
shares this experience
there is no telling
where it will lead.
SOLSTICE
Nothing has hindered
the advance of summer —
Not remains of fire
or fear of more,
Not crying children
or deportations,
Not nuclear proliferation
or lies
or murders
or the tearing apart
of our country at its core.
We are bound by nature,
a force as large within us
as around us.
We are one with it.
We are nature itself.
So when the rose greets us
let us feel renewed.
And when the lavender fields
are in full bloom,
let us, like the bees,
sing in harmony.
And let us drink the fruit of the vines,
through centuries, perfected.
Let joy creep into our souls
and celebrate
that we have no control of the seasons,
that summer still comes
and brings its warmth
and joys and fullness,
and carries us on its path
into the future, into the light, into the sun.
WITHOUT WINTER
Without winter
how would we know spring?
How would we know the delight
of the first bud of the rose,
or the sighting of a robin
at the break of day?
How would we know
that we climbed out of the drudge
that winter holds?
That we have been transformed
from our underworld dive?
Without winter in our soul
how would we feel renewed by love,
by the awakening of sleepy cells
that long ago remained unchanged?
How would we know if we
passed through hell
to come out healed?
How would we know
what healing is?
Without the depths of our journey
How would we know we arrived?
Without winter
how would we remember
that not a spring comes by
without its promise of renewal,
its soft colors,
enchanting breeze,
its welcoming silence, setting the stage
for that first sign of relief?
THIRST
They are all older than me —
the mountains, seas, trees.
They hold the wisdom of the years,
the secrets to survive.
They know not to fret
over small things,
that the world goes on around them
crazy and blind.
They remain steadfast in their presence,
all drinking from the same pool —
the one at the center of the universe,
the one offering me a sip.