Broad Horizon

Broad Horizon

 

Stillness of snow covered prairie

seeps into weary bones

solitude's silence once again

draws out cluttered thoughts

 

Western Nebraska's broad horizons

swallow up the day's worries

burden laid upon yoke

refreshing inner calm

 

Fingers of snow drifts iced over

protrudes along property line

chaos of wind driven fury resisted

lover's warmth melts the sting

 

Intimacy's embrace in oneness

under brisk open sky

restores sense of oneness

emptiness absorbs all dissonance

 

Renews what's been taken

refills what's been freely given

peace washes fluidly beneath

broad horizon's invitation

 

Leaving soft pastel colors

brushed upon once heavy memories

transforming the meaning

of what has been

 

Poem 20-037B

#westernnebraskthoughtsandlife, #highplainspoet, nebraska, western_nebraska, prairie, renewal, healing, pilgrimage, spiritual

Nebraska Love Affair

Nebraska Love Affair

 

A Nebraska love affair

with barren prairie

once despised

now a healing balm

 

Seen with new eyes

touched by stark beauty

silence draws out treasure

exposes longings buried

 

The Oregon Trail adventure

each day's a journey leaves

litter of unnecessary baggage

to lighten spirit's load

 

Burying the dead

left along the way

a price willingly pay

in hope of the promise land

 

Tall grass

hypnotizing sway

relaxes the mind

beneath molasses sky

 

Today the prairie calls

mountain peaks outline fading horizon

muffled sorrow as cross

where previous generations wouldn't pass

 

No regrets knowing the risk as

some refuse the invitation

and choose to be left in the past

face the grief of the unknown

 

Life and health before me

just walk the trail today

lightly travel each hour

all extra weight cast away

 

Poem 20-037C

#westernnebraskthoughtsandlife, #highplainspoet, nebraska, western_nebraska, prairie, renewal, healing, journey, pilgrimage, spiritual

Quarantined Love

Quarantined Love

Cardboard spool

of empty toilet paper roll

where love quarantined

no more squares to give

Now forced together 24/7

warmth not shared between the sheets

unkempt bed mirrors lonely hearts

pain of love grown cold

Empty shelves

greedy impulses hoard

what love remains

packed neatly in dark cupboards

Blow gently upon cold ashes

embers still to nurse

tenderly fuel what's left

rebuild what's been neglected

Each breath whispers memories

of what we still have

stoke the fire with explosive tinder

add the dead bramble

Stroke her cheek

caress the tears

of what was lost

and now is found

Once again tangle

roots and limbs

embrace forgiveness

begin again

In season of quarantined love

connection grafted together

touching most

tender parts

Poem 20-123U

#highplainspoet, #westernebraskathougtsandlife, love, walls, distance, connection, relationship, healing, hope, restoration, forgiveness

Hope Whispers

hope whispers

     in the rustle of limbs

leaves

     lackadaisically float

memories

       dried leaves devoid of color

seasons of marriage as walk on what once was

      now dead

hope whispers

     in the sliver of moon

wondering

       if I am crazy in what I see

beauty

       for me found in ordinary places

that

       others walk by

hope whispers

     softly of restoration of brokenness

where forgiveness

     flows and mercy embraces

undeserved love

     expressed in spite of the pain

remembering

       the good times we have had

19-298y

#highplainspoet

Pace and Wait

Pace and Wait

            -i-

Anxiety paces the floor

footsteps ever echo

down darkened hallways

ever looking for light

            

            -ii-

Peace waits with me

thaws icy memories

walks with me

to the other side

           -iii-

Anxiety paces the floor

repressed buoyancy

always held under

can't catch a breath

            -iv-

Peace waits with me

pulls me above trauma

out of the riptide

to rest on freedoms shores

            -v-

Anxiety paces the floor

taut spring suppressed

overwound emotions

cortisol wreckage

            -vi-

Peace waits with me

volcanic emotive release

bears my burden

never forsaken

Poem 19-152z

#highplainspoet

The complexity of being human and trauma experienced. There is hope, peace, and healing. Matthew 11:28-30

Squalls

Squall

         -i-

Upon the eastern sky

   of a Nebraska 'eve

Patchwork of rain squalls

   rainbow's arch creases upon pale blue

        -ii-

Upon the eastern sky

   wash away the pain

Broken hearts cry

   heavy is the stain

        -iii-

Upon the eastern sky

   droplets pock the ground

Tears mix in bloodshot eyes

   heart sporadically pounds

        -iv-

Upon the eastern sky

   all the memories fly

Purging out the sepsis of trauma

   cleansing that integrates my soul

19-083A

#highplainspoet

https://www.westernnebraskathoughtsandlife.com

Realignment

Barren limbs bounce

  against baby blue sky

  pink clouds at day break

January mourning

  roots run deep

  anchoring heart and soul

Remembering time of breaking

  pain splinters and shatters

  all that made human

Hollowed out to the core

  questioning if roots would hold

  deep and sturdy they grasp into earth

Hallowedness runs deep

  slowly grows again

  fractures bound tight

Own the places of choice

  what I believe about me

  how I show up

Painful place of alignment

  fragmented parts rejoined

  congruence bound together

All that’s been broken

  mended and whole

  beautifully restored

19-027A

#highplainspoet

For all those who have wrestled in and through brokenness allowing God to re-form and transform you.

Faithful

Faithful (18-208B)

Freeze and thaw
breaking the mind
Smooth words seep
into fractured places

Bitter ale
becomes sweet
Slowly poising heart
one day at a time

Trauma clouds vision
blind to truth of moment
Shatters identity
new normal

Awake abruptly
from living nightmare
Hope's spark
freedom painfully comes

Responsibility for responses
humbly admit harm caused
How response damaged
most precious relationship

In trauma's wake
healing fragmented self
Healing harmed relationships
grace encountered

Journey of years
seeking help
Finally experiencing fruit
beauty of redemption story

Through it all discover
depth of Father's love
His mercy and kindness
overwhelm me

He never forsook me
He walked with me
In midst of brokenness
He comforted me

Shadows

Shadows (18-099D)

Quiet moment softness
Warmth settles on the bluffs
Morning light paints
Contrasting shades brown and green

Landscape of the heart
Joy and sorrows contrast
Trauma's shadow lingers
Cold chill in shadow places

About the Author:  Brian Bucks lives on a small horse ranch in Western Nebraska and is a husband, father, electrical engineer, and poet (18-099D).

Life (17-304A)

Life (17-304A)

Linear motion

Time's movement

Location over time

Roots

Foundation placed

Not knowing time

Will invest in place

Weathered

Storms pass

Still stands

Well built

Legacy

Till the heart

Plant the seeds

Pull the weeds

Harvest

Tears sown

Hope grown

Love known

Abundance

Broken restored

Lost found

Old renewed

Healed

Choices made

Who serve

Eternal consequences

Breathe

About the Author:  Brian Bucks lives on a small horse ranch in Western Nebraska and is a husband, father, electrical engineer, and poet. (17-304A)

Alive

Alive

wind
moans soft
in unison with
my breath
cold

heart
aches again
hope awakens desire
touches wounds
scarred

mind
in solitude
dawn's light breaks
colors thoughts
peace

About the Author:  Brian Bucks lives on a small horse ranch in Western Nebraska and is a husband, father, electrical engineer, and poet. (17-300D)

Letting Go

Letting Go

In the corner

of the mind

Where younger

self hides

Time to come

out in the light

A victim

no more

Times and seasons

change ushering in

Healing and redemption

as forgiveness flows

Time to mend

So far in the past

No longer who I was

They no longer who they were

Safe in the now

adult self can

Nurture broken young self

where loving kindness changes everything

Just one touch

shattered the child

A suddenly of God

with one touch all is changed

Put away the suffering

reliving the trauma

Winter to Spring

new life emerges in soul

About the Author:  Brian Bucks lives on a small horse ranch in Western Nebraska and is a husband, father, electrical engineer, and poet. (17-202C)

Landfill of Soul

Landfill of Soul

Landfill of soul

What buried

Not yet finished

Resurrected to recycle

Garbage works

Its way to surface

Or seeps poison

Into ground

What's buried

Still living

Still crying out

Manifesting below conscious

Demanding a voice

A witness to hear

Then healing rushes in

Purifying the soul

About the Author:  Brian Bucks lives on a small horse ranch in Western Nebraska and is a husband, father, electrical engineer, and poet. (17-202C)

Restored

              Restored

False places of comfort
Default scripts run in thoughts
Muscle memory of soul
Unconscious memory of mind
Work in tandem in harmful response

Press into awareness of body
What is my body telling me
What memories are being called upon
Once hidden things exposed to Light
Gentleness and kindness to what is found

Allowing Father's love and tenderness
Peace and rest finally after all these years
Maturity and wholeness, a new way to live
Congruent and complete
Restored

About the Author:  Brian Bucks lives on a small horse ranch in Western Nebraska and is a husband, father, electrical engineer, and poet. (17-116A)

Give It Away

          Give It Away

Fractured places

Broken people

Broken relationships

Broken hope

Carrying brokenness forward

Cycles of sowing the wind

Reaping the whirlwind

Generations repeat to the next

Interpreting cycles and participation

Exchanging and giving love into broken places

Aligning with Truth of situation

Walking into the pain with salve of Father's love

Expressing Father's grace and mercy

His healing in the midst of cycles

His love while staying internally solid

Grace binds up fractured people

Love offers hope to thirsty soul

Mercy given instead of judgment

From Father's goodness received

Freely give it away

About the Author:  Brian Bucks lives on a small horse ranch in Western Nebraska and is a husband, father, electrical engineer, and poet. (17-076A)

Never the Same

   Never the Same

Never the same,
After the moment of pain.
Trauma twists,
Clench fist.

Moment in time,
Internal's slimed.
Healing comes slowly,
Discovery of what's Holy.

About the Author:  Brian Bucks lives on a small horse ranch in Western Nebraska and is a husband, father, electrical engineer, and poet.

Spring's Chill

       Spring's Chill

Spring's chill,
Fall's hard freeze.
Heart unfilled,
Lover can't please.

Unable to fill gap between,
Fall can't bridge to Spring.
Bitterness of alone unseen,
Hope no longer sings.

Dark seasons of soul,
Sometimes wonder if worth the cost.
Healing longs for all made whole,
All is not lost.

About the Author:  Brian Bucks lives on a small horse ranch in Western Nebraska and is a husband, father, electrical engineer, and poet.