For all who are willing to embark on the journey ahead – may you always bring back treasure.
you will be given
instructions for the journey
ahead - in due time
you will be given
a list of supplies - most you
already possess
fully equipped, you
will walk into the unknown
and bring back treasure
I see circling
of the birds,
gliding and swooping
chasing and racing
noisily,
joyfully,
trilling and thrilling,
echoing,
talking smack
with each hard flap.
Musical fellows are these
winged creatures,
and masterful linguists.
They put on a show
that delights
and confounds.
Then they line up on
a wire to catch their
breath, take a humble
bow, and in a blink
they are gone,
with a flutter
and a flap
as we wave
and we clap,
calling for more.
Bravo!
Encore!
But they all fly away.
Show's over for today.
everything in life
holds the seeds of beauty
ever ready to be scattered and sown
waiting to be cracked wide open
longing to release the essence of wonder
therefore, see everything in your life
as fertile ground
watered by your tears and dreams
ready at any moment
to burst into bloom
to spread like green vines
entwining goodness of every kind
to each of your circumstances
until your life is a thing
of great beauty
and your heart spreads
kindness and love
wherever you go
This is for anyone who has to do hard things (like chemo – or just life). May you have the courage to just show up.
I don't want to go
I don't want to go back
I don't want to go back there
I don't want to go back there ever
I don't want to go back there ever again
Lord, give me the strength to just show up.
Of course, I showed up. How could I not? My life depends on it.
In December 2022, I was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer. I am currently undergoing chemotherapy. I invite you to sign up for my monthly newsletter to follow my cancer journey.
the moon waits for me
at sunrise
slowly melting into the sky
each morning I don't walk by
the oak holds steady
around the corner
thick arms open wide
patiently she waits
for the next embrace
the fields hold their breath
listening for my footfall
the birds whistle and chirp
my name is in their call
but my door remains
closed to the world
the sun climbs high
without seeing my face
and like a flower that doesn't
bloom until springtime
I am offered winter's grace
You speak to me
through the blades
of grass
with sparkling dewdrops
like tiny tears
holding my sadness
in the palm of your
hand, absorbing
the sorrow
in the breast of your
broken heart
a heart that cries
rivers of tears
and you wash away
the sadness
with the waters
of your love, holding me
in the palm of your hand
there is healing in your
touch as you bring me
back to life
and you set me on high
and you let me
live again
This is especially for everyone grappling with a new medical diagnosis, and for all who love and care for them.
it's a new language
I'm learning to speak
these medical words
in this medical world
with these medical people
they stick in my throat
these unfamiliar terms
these foreign ideas
that I don't want to speak
these words should remain
locked in closets or shoved
deep under the bed
these awful words I dread
but speak them I must
and face them head on
there's no cure in hiding
wishing they were gone
no, I'm not fluent
in this new language
I retain only
what I need to know
and the words still stick
in my throat