Blessings

lillian

When the cacophony of news blares deafening dreadful,
‘tis time to still one’s feet, one’s hands, one’s mind.

Seek the beautiful, but for a moment.
Listen to stillness and you will hear the quiet.

Contemplate the beside you ~
     the chair upon which you sit
     the cold-hot water you may choose to drink, to draw
     the texture of cloth which warms your skin
     the view through glass panes that alternates,
     day to night to day again
     the love you carry within your heart,
     from those who have held your hands.

Inhale. Exhale. Breathe.

Then slowly rise and move deliberately,
into the good.

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It’s Tuesday and that means Poetics at dVerse, the virtual pub for poets. Paul is hosting and tells us about a book, Anam Cara, by Irish poet/philosopher John O’Donahue, which includes a number of “Blessings” poems. Paul asks us to write a blessing, adding “and may our words create ripples in the pond of the world.”  Pub opens at 3 PM Boston time. Come soar with us! Photo taken a number of years ago on our Baltic cruise.

67 thoughts on “Blessings”

  1. nosaintaugustine June 27, 2017 / 1:52 pm

    We need these poems desperately! I can’t wait to read everyones tonight. Great poem! Loved the whole thing and there was one word in particular that had a big impact for me- “Deliberately.”

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    • lillian June 28, 2017 / 7:30 am

      Thank you! I loved the idea of this prompt and I so agree….we need these reminders of the blessings among us! 🙂 Glad you enjoyed.

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    • lillian June 28, 2017 / 7:31 am

      I do believe these spots are all around us if we but look, and sit. 🙂

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  6. sarahsouthwest June 27, 2017 / 3:03 pm

    Oh, this is gorgeous. I love the final stanza. I’d quite like to have this on a postcard, pinned in my office at work, to remind me that sometimes I need to just sit and be.

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    • lillian June 28, 2017 / 7:33 am

      Yes indeed. Sometimes it is the way to feel a peace inside ourselves. Tlad you enjoyed, Sarah.

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  7. Grace June 27, 2017 / 3:07 pm

    A beautiful prayer ~ I love this part:

    Seek the beautiful, but for a moment.
    Listen to stillness and you will hear the quiet.

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    • lillian June 28, 2017 / 7:34 am

      Thank you, Grace. I so enjoyed this prompt! Paul graced us with a beauty for our last poetics til we return from summer break.

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  9. kim881 June 27, 2017 / 3:21 pm

    The photo is a beautiful illustration for your blessing poem, Lillian. My favourite lines:
    ‘Seek the beautiful, but for a moment.
    Listen to stillness and you will hear the quiet.’
    and
    ‘Then slowly rise and move deliberately,
    into the good’.

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    • lillian June 28, 2017 / 7:35 am

      Thank you, Kim. I so enjoyed this prompt! Will be reading over the weekend as 5 grandchildren (and our children!) arrive today 🙂

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  10. frankhubeny June 27, 2017 / 3:48 pm

    I liked the listening to the stillness and the attention to details, the breathing, and the deliberate movement into the good.

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    • lillian June 28, 2017 / 7:37 am

      Thank you, Alison. Yes….being mindful. A number of years ago I took some classes in meditation and was told not to “ruminate” — which means dwell in the past. Rather to live in the present. Be in the present. I think sitting and listening, even if just for a moment, is just that.

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  12. whippetwisdom June 27, 2017 / 3:56 pm

    A beautiful blessing to move into the good, thank you for sharing this Lillian :o) xxx

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  13. Bodhirose June 27, 2017 / 4:17 pm

    I love your beautiful and heartfelt blessing, Lillian. It’s much like an instructed meditation. xo

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    • lillian June 28, 2017 / 7:38 am

      Funny you should say that, about the meditation. I took some lessons in meditation some years ago. The point was not to ruminate — dwell in the past. But through guided meditation, live in the present…”be” at the very moment.

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    • lillian June 28, 2017 / 7:39 am

      Goes with “mama zen!” Glad you enjoyed 🙂

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  15. Glenn Buttkus June 27, 2017 / 5:04 pm

    Bless you, dear lady, for you mounted the positive side of the prompt–and your own positive spin projected out to each of us. I often write as a dystopian outlaw of the sensorium–exploring the darker side of good intentions.

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    • lillian June 28, 2017 / 7:40 am

      Glad you enjoyed this one, Glenn. You may be a “dystopian outlaw of the sensorium – exploring the darker side of good intentions…” but you do it so WELL! 🙂

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  16. Bev June 27, 2017 / 5:47 pm

    In our busy world, it’s difficult to “listen to the stillness”, but alas I can’t appreciate it any more for the ringing in my ears! Your blessing is so beautifully penned, Lillian. Kudos to you!

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    • lillian June 28, 2017 / 7:42 am

      Sometimes I do try to find a silent quiet place….if even for a moment with lights turned out and curtains drawn. We also have some “green space” outside our highrise here in the city, and I enjoy sitting on a bench with my eyes closed. City sounds are there….but in the listening I can hear the birds and the trees rustle too! 🙂

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  17. Adda June 27, 2017 / 6:17 pm

    Reading your Blessings was so soothing, I felt at peace. I think my heart beat slower after reading. You touched heart and soul. Such a marvelous statement: “Then slowly rise and move deliberately, into the good” – deliberately is critical here. But first, as you pointed out, we must Breathe. Thank you for stilling my life and moving me “into the good”. 🙂 Hugs from IA

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    • lillian June 28, 2017 / 7:43 am

      Thank you, Adda. Your words are making me smile here. This was a special prompt and truly the way I feel. 🙂

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  18. lynn__ June 27, 2017 / 6:38 pm

    Yes, “seek the beautiful” and “listen to the stillness”…it would do us all good 😊

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  19. Victoria C. Slotto June 27, 2017 / 7:28 pm

    I love that list, those things that we, as poets, are drawn to take in. Such a gift for your reader to draw us in, too.

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    • lillian June 28, 2017 / 7:48 am

      Thank you, Victoria. I loved the prompt and this is exactly what I believe. 🙂

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  20. Singledust June 27, 2017 / 7:36 pm

    the blessings of the ordinary, just lovely Lillian and timely, these are the greatest blessings of all, everyone you mentioned is such a big gift to us all. your words reminds me of Grace Crowell’s I have found joy in simple things.

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    • lillian June 28, 2017 / 7:49 am

      Sometimes I truly believe we need to revert to simplicity…minimalism…..to understand and be thankful for every day. 🙂 So glad you enjoyed this one.

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    • lillian June 28, 2017 / 7:47 am

      Yes indeed. Glad you enjoyed, Jilly!

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    • lillian June 28, 2017 / 7:46 am

      Exactly. Sometimes we just need to put down the newspaper, unplug, and just BE.

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    • lillian June 28, 2017 / 7:46 am

      Sometimes, to sit still is exactly what we need, right? Put down the newspaper, unplug, and just BE. 🙂

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  24. Kathy Reed June 28, 2017 / 5:06 am

    What is needed today amidst the fray….breathing is the best exercise! Nice one.

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    • lillian June 28, 2017 / 7:45 am

      Thank you, Kathy. So glad you enjoyed. 🙂

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  26. Waltermarks June 28, 2017 / 8:43 am

    Wonderful idea, I try to do it every morning. If I don’t have time for the beautiful, I save the news for another time. Otherwise it’s like drinking poison without taking the antidote first. I may just skip the poison altogether and just do the reflection. there, all better already. Thanks, that’s better

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  27. Misky June 28, 2017 / 9:41 am

    … “into the good”. Brilliant. It just summarises to the entire piece perfectly.

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    • lillian July 5, 2017 / 5:55 pm

      So glad you enjoyed. Some days, I admit, it’s harder to find the good. We just need to keep looking! 😊

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  29. Dr. Crystal Howe June 28, 2017 / 1:33 pm

    This is wonderful! I like “contemplate the beside you” and “move deliberately into the good.” Well done!

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    • lillian July 5, 2017 / 5:57 pm

      So glad you enjoyed! I do think it’s important these days, to remember, there is good!

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  30. colorfulpen June 28, 2017 / 4:53 pm

    A beautiful blessing, Lillian. I especially love the “inhale. exhale. breathe” line.

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    • lillian July 10, 2017 / 8:32 am

      And lovely to see you here again. So glad you enjoy my poems. I do enjoy my early morning coffee with pen in hand. Sometimes I get very surprised at what comes out on the page!😊

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