January Lingers

January Lingers

Dull blue gray lingers upon the horizon

like the neighbors stray farm cat

reluctant to leave in hopes of finding

one more mouse or unwary bird

Gray black fear hovers as covid's effects linger

masks hide expression once exposed

distance kept to calm anxious hearts

intentionality in every action to calm soul

Tracks of snow linger where tires compressed

two ribbons of white remain surrounded by

wet brown sandy loam desperate to drink in

the remaining ribbon tracks

Barren branches linger with a few stubborn leaves

brittle and brown holding on to the past season

reluctant to let go until there is something green

to release themselves into like a bad memory that cycles

Poem 21-030z January Lingers

Hoarding

Hoarding

Interior clutter with years of accumulated debris
all the work to purge years of now useless things
beliefs that no longer produce fruit
branches hang barren and lifeless
no blossom of fruit

Left wondering why clung so tightly to the trunk
what was so comforting about the bark
that pulls off in my grip exposing the deadness

Perhaps it is time to let it go
grieve the loss and enjoy the warmth
burning the trunk and humus brings

21-032z

Dust

Do you ever feel like one of those old abandoned farmhouses
the ones where the door is half off the hinges and ajar
with windows busted out and old white siding with paint peeled off
where weathered wood rots in the open air exposed to harsh elements

Where sun bakes it in the summer
wind sandblasts it relentlessly
winter snow on wooden floors once filled with life
where bare feet danced of husband and wife

Bedrooms where love once made left stark and vacant
after all these years the memories fade into stripped walls
what once was full of life now silent
only haunting moans of sorrowful wind

Grieving all that's been lost as each year passes
soon the walls will fail and collapse under the weight of sorrow
then comes the match to burn the debris
a tractor rumbles spewing smoke that fills in the foundation

The old tree row uprooted
all traces of what was returned to the dust
from which it all came
in a few generations all the memories gone

What once was lost to the ages
a wisp of ash carried in the breeze
stripping the exterior of the next abandoned home
that is what today feels like

Poem 20-362 a somberness in the atmosphere today
#highplainspoet, #westernnebraskathoughtsandlife
Reflection, Dust, Grief, Sorrow, Life ©

A Psalm of Remembrance

 

A Psalm of Remembrance

 

Colors of Autumn remind me

of the Truth of Father's love

that extends out from before time

until time is no more

as an offer of communion with Him

 

He beckons me to

dis-member the lies

the lie not enough

not loveable

not worth it

that must earn love

that must perform

that must be perfect

just one more thing

then I'll be loveable

 

Dis-member the lies

one at a time with Holy Spirit

unravel the moment

the thought took root

that believed the lie to be true

bring before Father

repent for making a lie bigger

than His love for me

 

Re-member the Truth

He paid a great price

to reclaim me as His own

His loving hand reaches out to me

He was there in the darkest moments

when the lie began to dis-member me

receive His offer of re-membering

 

Open up my heart Oh God

that I might choose to believe

to tear down the family stronghold

that binds the sin of one generation to the next

as Gideon chopped up the family idol

so too I choose to explore, expose, and dismember the beliefs

that have stood in defiance of You

turning them into altars of praise

where Your redemption and reclamation

alter and align to

make things right between me and You

 

It is Your kindness that leads me to repentance

today you reclaim me as Yours

relaxing into union with You

communion restored and peace settles

deep within as I know

I am right with You

re-membering all Your goodness

Your Mercy and Loving-kindness

follow me all the days of my life

 

 

20-278Z A Psalm of Remembrance

#highplainspoet, #westernnebraskathoughtsandlife, #redemption, #love, #restoration, #remember, #dismember

 

Seasons of Covid

While we waited in the seasons of covid

spring slipped into summer and summer into fall

where anxiety yields to new reality

of a year held hostage to rampant fear

spewing into social media and news

 

Isolation suffocating once vibrant hope

dread awakens at the start of a new day

wondering what new rumor starts

what new spin plastered in the media

stoking fear until just turn it all off

embracing the four seasons of winter in silence

  

Poem 20-275Z

#highplainspoet, #westernnebraskathoughtsandlife, #covid, #noise, #social_media

Wide Open

 

Wide Open

 

Sky's wide open

like that place in my heart

where you and I reside

 

Poem 20-218y

#highplainspoet #westernnebraskathoughtsandlife #nebraska #love

A blurb on a scratch sheet of paper sitting on my desk I jotted down as it came to me a while ago

 

Original Intent

Original Intent

 

Rush from the moment

woke to rib removed

there you were watching

reflected part of me

 

Gaze upon one another

curves and peaks discover

no shame in curiosity uncovered

knowing what parts removed

 

Gift of companionship and lover

union before the Fall

no greater or lesser between

walk in cool with God each day

 

Tend the Garden

of the other's soul

intimacy in another realm

flow of together in bliss

 

Other worldly covering

transparent beyond vision

synced in harmony

freedom to love and be loved

 

Poem 20-184z

#highplainspoet, #westernnebraskathoughtsandlife, relationship, intimacy, union, restoration, reconciliation

 

Trying to imagine what Adam and Eve's relationship was before the Fall. Then further, what does redemption from the curse of the Fall look like for us. Since Jesus redeemed us from the curse, what parts of Eden are available to us today. What parts of intimacy have been redeemed and reclaimed, living beyond Genesis 3 in redemption.

Like The Wind

Like The Wind

 

She came in like the wind

and left as evaporating dew

leaving warm green jungle dripping

 

Long after she left

her words soak into soil of soul

like silk brushing cheek

 

Poem 20-177z

#highplainspoet, #westernnebraskathoughtsandlife, relationship, transformation, growth

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

Perception

Perception

Yellow bloom of dandelion

peers above green blades

one man's weed

is another's flower

Poem 20-164A

#westernnebraskathoughtsandlife, #highplainspoet, brevity, perception, paradigm, judgments, beliefs

Ink

Ink

My fountain pen ran out of ink

leaving the page empty

as I ponder what spills

without pen or paper

only to be written

upon the heart

At times a sacredness

in just sitting with poems

that are never meant for the page

to sing in deep resonance

that purges the busy mind

stringing words together

that will never be spoken

Poem 20-162y

#nebraskathoughtsandlife, #highplainspoet, poetry, spiritual, solitude

Hoo

Hoo

 

As dusk lands gently

hovering above the tree

the owl lights upon cottonwood

with each hoo from perch

spindly sprig bends beneath

 

Poem 20-130y

#nebraskathoughtsandlife, #highplainspoet, nature, owl, prairie, farm_life,western_nebraska

Family

Family

 

In chairs on the porch we sat

a quarantine quorum

healing moment

where grace given

 

Love in expression

as wash one another's feet

affirming what God has done

calling forth who we are

 

Rub oil into the creases

callouses of journey softened

the miles tread to get here

miles left to go

 

Sweetness envelopes

the blossom of repair

as receive love given

we rest as a family

 

Poem 20-123W

We did a foot washing as a family.

#westernnebraskathougthsandlife, #highplainspoet, family, spiritual, rest, joy, quarantine