Freedom in Love with Life and Light
Poetry ~ Musings ~ Art
freedom in love with life and light
asks us to remember that
this most exquisite being exists
as the simple and the ordinary
living an engaged-spirited life
where love and light
have made their home
exposing freedom at its core
This section contains a sample of several poems and musings that are in my book.
It does not contain my art work.
Chapters: Living Waters ~ Life ~ Aloneness ~ Love
Natural Beauty ~ Light ~ Pleasures
Freedom
The book is dedicated
to falcon
and
to you
"The more total you are, the deeper your relationship can be to any other human being. Once you find that inner core of yourself, you are free. And that leaves everyone around you free. You are not trying to make them into anything. You are not telling them what is best for them. You know you do not know that. What you are doing is receiving them fully as the human beings they are. This is where love begins; it sees the mystery of the other and is just overwhelmed by it."
The Feminine Face of God: The Unfolding of the Sacred in Women
Sherry Ruth Anderson and Patricia Hopkins
L I V I N G W A T E R S
water
The connection to my river
has taken its own wanderings
where tears and river
flow freely with endless ease
winding themselves down cracks
of skin and earth
marking deep channels
with windy furrows
speaking volumes of
what has yet to come
Elegantly so
Filling these big brown eyes to the brim
Sitting on a plane looking earthwards
Witnessing this majestic river
Winding down wide wavy runs
Flashing its face upwards
Yes! Let's talk about elergance
blessed
by a river and a friend…
who would have imagined
an all-encompassing love
pouring sweet benedictions
on this rackety old woman
raising smiles to the sun
bowing down to the ground?
who knows?
Walking down
this path of life
Maybe you will feel
how utterly loveable you are
Maybe you get to know
your own current calling
Flowing like a river
to its source
Musings
Listen to the stirring of the river in your veins
it’s murmuring your beloved name
*
it flows ~ it knows
its curved folds
are nothing more
than its moving soul
*
surging downstream
living waters
hold the power
of purging you clean
*
the fastest way
maybe is
the slower one
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
L I F E
Creation
Opening our sensuous mouth
uttering a single word
worlds are born
Opening our stunning eyes sharp ears
worlds stare hum
back at us
Smelling tasting touching
myriad worlds manifest
their tantalizing flavors
Offering intimate possibilities
aligning our senses
with the true nature of everything
Words are medicine
Words
needing to sound
intelligently wise
so interestingly refined
Words
fabricating tales
making us believe in
what we are
Words
kindly spoken
unleash a heart
from timeless bondage
Wondering
what songs are we singing?
what songs are we listening to?
Ode to Smoke
Oh! what beauty there is
on this breathless dizzy day
where everything appears
as an illusory haze
where everything is
floating like a dream
making me feel bathed
in a soft light of daze
all is as it should be
nothing to change
nothing to see through
only my gifted gaze
beaming like a laser
piercing my very being
opening me up onto
other ways of seeing
Joy
From that care-free place
in my body
I celebrate
full
vast
happy
singing
dancing
laughing
I love this life mine
this life of yours this life of ours
what’s the difference anyway?
Musings
being human ~
loving happy sad angry moved kind soft depressed stubborn joyful hateful hurt lustful content sincere confused clear stuck lost sensual frustrated fulfilled excited sexy compulsive doubtful fearful caring anxious touched playful critical bewildered tender withholding helpful interested obsessive curious thoughtful cherishing…
these and many more may all be packed into a single day’s span
we shouldn't be amazed how sometimes
we feel so crazed!
*
respecting and attendig to a grief
is an act of
self-loving
...as is joy
*
calling all souls to communion
with what is
nothing more
nothing less
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A L O N E N E S S
Flaming Gorge, Wyoming
Wandering in the middle of nowhere
an expansive desertness
opens up before me
with nobody in sight
only billowing clouds coasting by
I witness a most breathtaking site
on one side
heat waves weaving waywardly south
saturate the air with strong sagebrush scents
on the other
impressive sandstone buttes
stand sentinels to stillness
and way down there
the deepest blue of waters
reflects the bluest of skies
saying Howdy!
to this lone and wondrous traveler
who can’t help but smile big
as happy as can be
well-being
settling in
going deep
finding
peace
love
joy
one lone poppy
at the tip of a stem
brightly orange and all
moves playfully
as soft breezes
tenderly touch
her delicate petals
no
effort
here
just being who she is
one lone poppy
in the breeze
Musings
loneliness ~ aloneness
the power of surrendered acceptance
*
to know is to be as the now
it is in the word itself
*
come closer than close to your wintry hollow
drink deeply
now is the time to know your own birth song
sing it out completely
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
L O V E
dissolution
We want a beloved
but we are afraid of intimacy
we want intimacy
but we are afraid of merging
we want merging
but we are afraid of commitment
we want commitment
but we are afraid our beloved will devour us whole
well...
we can count on it!
this is about so big a love
it will obliterate us to smithereens
catapulting us whole
into a whole new world
Be. Being.
Be here now
Being here now
one an admonition
the other a loving presence
hoping we are turning
towards Being
Blessings
Spoken through the grace of Debbie Crone
(December 21, 1956 - June 8, 2021)
I am one who lifts
into infinite possibilities
into the freedom of things
I bring you light-heartedness
and a deep sense of connection
with your beloved self
I am the one rising
from the depths of emotion
into the light of knowing
I bring you great blessings
may you be filled
with loving kindness
for yourself
and for all you touch with
your eyes your words
your smiles your hands
I bring you great loving
Musings
they tell you to be
considerate patient gentle loving
are you? to y o u ?
*
as we set boundaries
we become stronger bolder
with a love
without bounds
*
absolute honesty and being real
is what the heart really loves
absolutely
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
N A T U R A L B E A U T Y
Stillness
You have gone to
where I am going
so let me rest here
for a while
sensing you walking
into these lines from time to time
(a tribute to Mary Oliver)
little insect
in one spot
one speck
so to speak
a colorful
dainty
glittery being
dangling gently
from a tiny stem
serenely still
suddenly
she softly stirs
unfolds
her luminous wings
and ever so lightly is
lifted by the winds
Sunshine Everywhere
Warmth splendid sun drifts quiet
And The Mind Is Busy Trying To Find
Things To Do
Places To Go
New Country Roads To Roam
nothing wrong with all this mind you
instead I stayed home in my tiny front yard
poppies blooming all around little daisies happily showing their fresh
sweet faces soft breezes smiling through me tiny spiders spinning
their silky ways bees buzzing along their endless merry~go~rounds
the ground tickled pink by the exuberance of Spring!
Beautiful Blue Butterfly
fluttery
wispy
whiffs
floating
freely
with
the
wind
gratitude
Curled up in bed
I quietly watch
a canopied camellia tree
coming alive as the cooling rain
moves through her glorious
green and red attire
sending shivers
up and down
her silvery spine
Musings
physical matter does matter it’s Infinity’s density
it also doesn’t matter
for the wise say ~ we must die before we die
*
once in a while let's just pause
*
stumbling into a paradox
I fall right into truth
*
each day is brand new
it’s just our minds
have not caught up with it yet!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
L I G H T
eyes
only see what is swirling
in busy minds
while a solitary streak of light
burns right through brilliant bright sight
spilling out sparkly starry tunes
shape-shifting old stale tales of seeing
the question
“Speak to me.”
“About what?” inquired silence.
“Oh, this and that.”
“Then what?” asked silence.
“Just to know who am I
In this life of mine?”
“Well,” replied silence.
“In stillness
You are the light
My dreams are made of.”
belonging
Longing to belong
in one way or another
finding that special safe spot
where my spark is
seen
held
accepted
respected
I sometimes wonder whether
belonging
is none other than the
longing to be
Musings
have you ever considered
everything in the cosmos
is but pixels of light
each point refracting Consciousness
in seemingly multiple sights?
*
my three-year-old grandson once said
the moon is God’s flashlight!
he also said
I am empty of words
*
born of ligh made of stardust
*
transcendence seekers
here is an axiom for us ~
in becoming immanent
being fully in our lively lovely bodies
transcendence becomes imminent
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
P L E A S U R E S
it’s like this
One moment overtaken by bliss
the next overtaken by a cop
with traffic ticket to boot!
the difference is
first moment extraordinary
second quite ordinary
which one do you think
brings a smile to my face?
the ordinary!
you know why?
because now at each stop sign
I brake completely
take my sweet time
breathe deeply
and just like this
fall right back
into bliss!
letters
like droplets of dew on my tongue
I forge forth unto the unknown
a place where wild things slumber
the place of constant ebb and flow
that place where you are tongue-tied
as mystery unfolds
coming of age
A seagull just landed
on my deck
and in front of me
an endless Pacific Ocean
glistening
ever changing ~
it’s my 65th birthday today
celebrating it
with gifts of
windy
watery
seagull
Source
H e a r t E a r t h
contain each other’s holy letters ~
cuddled lovingly within them
a wholly whimsical word
a r t
graceful
merciful
beauty
Musings
we have framed ourselves
with flat edge-lined surfaces
while all along our bodies
are rounded curved sensualities
*
slowing down taking it easy
we have nothing to loose
but our dizzying minds
*
Holding your lover
Mmmmm…….
Heaven!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
F R E E D O M
happiness
As more and more freedom
seeps into my being
the happier I feel
the happier I feel
more and more freedom
fills up my day
finding this
fierce love
living a human life
lockdown offerings
Being on a year-long retreat
I have been treated with a treat
finally finding the missing piece
I am no longer a child
no longer do I have to seek
no longer do I have to listen
to others’ teachings of what to do and how to be
I no longer have to be present kind or real
I am present
I am kind
I am real
I simply am
I am Awareness
Resting as
Awareness
I n f i n i t e E t e r n a l
I Am That
I Am
names and words of power
for one loving name
I
Awareness Consciousness Knowing Silence
Unknowable Unnamable Emptiness Reality Mystery
The Absolute Eternity Infinity Source Freedom Mother
Priceless Jewel The Beloved Heart Mind The Logos All That Is
Existence Being I Am Light Truth Home The Universe
The Force Divine Intelligence Luminous Darkness Essence
Presence True Nature The Divine Spirit Life Self
Brahman The Tao Buddha Nature Yahweh
Goddess God Allah Love Peace
Happiness Joy Beauty
Silence
S I L E N C E
S I L E N C E
S I L E N C E
S I L E N C E
S I L E N C E
S I L E N C E
S I L E N C E
S I L E N C E
SOUNDING
SOURCE
SOUNDLY
Musings
having and making choices
does not mean I am in control
how about free will?
do I think I have that too?
I am told to reconsider
as beliefs tend to be stumbling blocks
to my inner most
fervent queries
*
Awareness does not reside
in the body or in the mind or in the world
rather
the bodymindworld resides in Awareness
not even that
All Is Awareness
*
I settle on this silent groundless
Ground of Being
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
C O N C L U S I O N
Freedom in Love with Life and Light
What I value the most
where I hang out with the most
is Freedom
Such an awakening required traveling over
mountains and valleys
with immense courage
Wwimming upstream
through raging storms
of bitter tears
While all along this joyful
aliveness kept shining
its vibrant face
Revealing Freedom
that tender
loving space