Sit And Be Still

Gentle words to hold in quiet stillness and be at peace ~ ~ ~

 
Sit and be still

until in the time
of no rain you hear

beneath the dry wind’s
commotion in the trees

the sound of flowing
water among the rocks,

a stream unheard before,

and you are where
breathing is prayer.

–Wendell Berry

 

Ode To Our Dying Mother

Ode To Our Dying Mother

Mostly I find the tempest rages from within
when I see violence to the heart of wounded souls.

No longer able to contain the power of love,
I must speak out as God Love speaks through me.

There is no honor in standing by
to watch a mortal suffer pain and woe.

There is no comfort to “do nothing” –
but great joy comes with the act.

Summon courage now to be
the universal healer that you are.

Stand up for testimony to
the dying of our earth.

Without your voice, She is not heard,
Her sorrow vanishes away.

We are the children of a Mother
who has shed Her blood for you.

Upon Her desperation
we must offer tender care

To bless each flower
as She fades away.

~ Anna Lin
April 2/ 2014

 

I have been reluctant to post this lest it sound like hopelessness for a world that is in crisis. It is true that I/we witness extinction* on a daily basis. And this poem honors that grief and loss and the need to lament. But there are also signs of hope springing up every day, as witnessed by the People’s Climate March last weekend.

Change is happening; and our despair for our Mother Earth may be the driving force that leads us forward to push for a brighter, healthier future.

May we fully love our Mother Earth and care for all people who live here now and in the coming days.
*Thank you to Megan Hollingsworth for her inspiring work at ExtinctionWitness.org