Don’t be afraid to be vulnerable in front of those you love;
when we allow others to see our brokenness,
God’s light shines through the cracks in our heart.
Category: Poetry
soft arms scented with cinnamon and sugar
My big sister—
the poet, the editor, the mediator
the strong survivor, the loving mother
the beautiful woman
my inspiration, my friend—
gave me this Dutch cake mix for appeltaart
when she last came to visit us.
And though she’s a province away,
when I make it with my girls—
carefully chopping the apples together,
blending in the butter,
brushing with egg to finish the masterpiece—
I am with her, too.
“Lekker gezellig!” deliciously cosy…
The love of my sister
wraps around me like these strips of dough
around the nested apples,
soft arms scented with cinnamon and sugar.
Contemplation by Moonlight
Outside the moon smiles lopsided
ever laughing, ever the same
despite my foibles, my losses
my little tragedies and defeats,
the moon continues in it’s ever changing sameness,
shining down like a flashlight
from eternity,
each difference but a dance with shadows.
And while sirens blare
and strange cars drive by
on late night voyages,
the cool air caresses me with the same
light breath and the stars quietly proclaim
“We are forever.”
Can it be that I, too,
despite my little daily battles—
the exorbitant dishes, the laundry piles that heave and grow
like monsters animated by dust and finger-paint,
the millionth cup of spilled juice,
the sweet stickiness of the table after pancakes—
am somehow part of this cycle of sameness
which is a gateway to eternity?
that through these daily things
and my yes to the “now”
to the goodness of each day
I am also saying yes
to eternity?
An amen which fills the heart
with joy unquenchable..
The moon looks down
through the cool night air
upon my littleness
and laughs, “Yes!”
Sisters of the World
How beautiful it is to be here with so many sisters
Of ages 18 to 80
From many countries
And many different pasts
Learning together, growing together,
Dancing through the differences to find
Our common heart
Our shared desire for
A life with deeper meaning
A world with brighter hope
And warmer love
Embracing everyone
With our prayer and affection
Those confiding smiles
That sincere understanding
And many little acts of kindness
May this better world
Where each person is sacred
Begin with us
Earthbound
Tonight my Dad and I were having
one of those great philosophical conversations
over dinner, salad dressing with fresh garlic
and ideas full of flavour
We talked about Pope Francis’ words
about the earth our sister, our mother, our home
Dad remembered the story of the first astronaut
who spent 4 hours out in space
two circles around the earth
and came home sick and depressed
away from the earth’s heartbeat
the electromagnetic pulse all we require to stay alive
Now spacesuits have this little beat built in
the heart of our home
pulsing close to her children in space
As for me, I have no desire to see
the outside of my mother’s womb
the shining blue roundness of the earth
gleaming against the blackness of space
I am happy to be a child of the earth
bare feet on the dirt
toes in the grass
A humble creature made of dust
and living among the flowers
I know, without seeing the stars up close
that I’ve got a spark of that eternal fire within me
My soul travels to realms afar
within the confines of this blue egg
this delicate haven of life
in the blackness
I have no desire to leave my mother’s house
until I travel to see my Father
A journey without fear
a coming home from home
a further blossoming
into Life.
a little brush with beauty
In the rose petals
curled about the flower’s center
like hands cupped about a mystery
enclosing an invisible prayer
I find You, Lord
Whisper to me
and blow me a kiss
a little brush with with beauty
as I walk by
A Father’s Gentle Strength
Being a father is being strong enough
to sacrifice everything for those you love…
constantly giving your all for your family,
bearing your little ones up with the gentleness
of someone powerful enough
to put others before himself.
Having a father is knowing you are never alone—
that there is always someone to hold your hand
and walk with you through the paths of this life
and into eternity.
How blessed are my children to have a father like this!
Thank you God for creating men who know how to love like you.
Help me always remember why I fell in love with the man
who is the father of my children,
whose love for me has become flesh
and walks among us.
Eternal Echo
Look up into the sky
with its whispy clouds
caught in still life ballet
Let the vast expanse of its azure stage
enter your soul through your eyes
Don’t you find
an inexpressible longing within
an echo of the eternal?
Can you tell me
with conviction
that you weren’t meant for Heaven?
If you do, my brother, my sister
I won’t believe you,
because I see mirrored in your eyes
pieces of my own heart.
Watering Flowers by Moonlight
Tonight the evening air is dusky
and has a faint smell of smoke
as if someone was stoking their fire
on this warm May night
The slightly bulging half-moon
beams down yellow
and sleepy like me
I seek poetry in the shadows
and realize the smokiness
is the peppery scent of purple lupins
spicing the dusk with their presence
Lingering in the quiet evening
I take pity on my planter pots
and water my flowers by moonlight
lest in the heat of the day I forget
A little bath for the basil
a big sip for the tomatoes
and lots—with love—
for my Josephine flower
Little Souls Like Shooting Stars
All this pain, Lord
all these broken hearts
broken open and flowing with beauty
Heaven escaping like steam from the geysers of love
that rush out of these parents’ broken hearts
2.6 million a year stillborn….
An overwhelming quiet
A heart stopping silence
Why is it that we must be broken to become more beautiful?
To finally reach out and connect
to honour each other’s pain
to realize each person is precious
and irreplaceable?
How mysterious this growing in love
that in losing the ones we love most
we become more loving
that in suffering we become more divine
just as You became human
to suffer with us
that we should never
no matter what
feel alone
Living in pain
we no longer live for ourselves
but for those we long for
and for those who are also broken by yearning
for little ones lost too soon
Our life is gift
and it is meant to be fruitful
We are not here for ourselves
but for others
to hold each other up with webs of love and hope
sparkling with dew-like tears
Above in the sky
a sound like thunder
a thousand angels’ wings
accompanying with solemn joy
the little souls who enter Heaven like shooting stars
and light up the sky
Never to fade
never to disappear
a light in the heavens always
Unique
irreplaceable
individuals
who will inspire us forever
Let us all become saints
so we can join them one day
and shed light into the shadows of a suffering world
Just East Of Crazy Land 