At the end of the long hallway
I pass through the double doors
and step out
the sky is the ceiling
the trees are the walls
She’s still here.
To learn more about my 108 Poetry Challenge or to donate click here.
Author: Bryn Bamber
Career Coach Bryn Bamber helps people like you find a career that’s aligned with your goals.
Her Burnout to Brilliance program teaches you how to make small shifts that will free up tons of energy for the things you really love.
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Learn more about Bryn & the Burnout to Brilliance program at www.brynbamber.com.
Singing on Rooftops
Getting out of the window is awkward
Pass the guitar
The bottle of wine
The cool breeze makes its own way over
When we were young
we sang on rooftops
When we were young
we knew what was in our hearts
When we were young
we held hands – just to experiment
You make it out too
We look over the garden
And out to the lake
And we sing
We sing what is in our hearts
We sing the songs of our childhood
I sing my mother’s songs
You sing your’s
And we sing our history right back into the present
I don’t know what’s in your heart
But I know what’s in mine
And we sing.
To learn more about my 108 Poetry Challenge or to donate click here. All proceeds go to the Young Adult Program at Yasodhara Ashram.
Wind
who has seen the wind?
the wise ones ask
and i have felt it
sweep over my skin
warm my heart
and i have felt it
shake me to my bones
I have not seen the wind
but I have fought it
peddling downhill
as it sweeps off the ocean
and asks me to question
do I really want to go over this hill and through these woods?
and does it have to be a fight?
and who is this wind off the ocean?
what does he stand for?
why are some days so hard?
and why does he blow?
who has seen the wind?
the wise ones ask
and i can’t stand it
who has heard the grain of sand speak?
and who has climbed the plains?
and who has touched the drifting melodies escaping from your lips?
who has seen the wind?
the wise ones ask
and I listen.
To learn more about my 108 Poetry Challenge or to donate click here.
Garden Crew
garden crew
a muttley crew
who love dirt
and worms
blood sweat and tears
they pour into this earth
to answer the simple question
how does your garden grow?
when asked
they shovel harder
weed faster
dig deeper
into their souls to find the answer
and what is life without a garden?
they ask the business people
what is life without a connection to the rhythm of the earth?
and what is life?
and the business people
plug the question into their iphones
promise to send a printout in the mail
and walk on.
To learn more about my 108 Poetry Challenge or to donate click here.
Petrichor
i breath in deeply
do you smell that?
breathe!
no! really breathe!
fill your lungs!
we stand
hand and hand
barefooted
at the edge of the forest
we step forward
the moss soft beneath our feet
I drop his hand and run
hair blown back
free
laughing
turning a corner I trip
and end up lying in the moss
looking at the tree tops
with the smell of rain
alone.
To learn more about my 108 Poetry Challenge or to donate click here.
Cats and Bean Tipis
forest kitty slinks into the bean tipi
chasing a mouse
he rips of its head
and leaves it
as an offering
on the ground
To learn more about my 108 Poetry Challenge or to donate click here.
Peach Season!
The juice drips down my chin
As I look over at the man I just met in the orchard
I smile, wipe the juice off
Climb back up my ladder
The orchard reminds me of my grandmother
Her rhythm of hard work
peach jam and apple pie
Peach season and it is hot
The sweat drips down my back
My t-shirt plastered to my body
I feel rung out
Rung thin
There’s no hiding in this heat
Peach juice drips down my chin
I look over at the man I just met
I smile.
To learn more about my 108 Poetry Challenge or to donate click here.
Barefoot Adventure
White dress
White purse
White scarf
I am walking home barefoot
Misplaced my shoes in the department store
Took them off to feel the white shag between my toes
Looked back and they were gone
The wind blows my hair
A man with a briefcase squints at my feet
Where are my shoes??
Where is my shame?
Who have I become?
I pause – feel the wind, the warmth of the pavement beneath my feet. Then,
Chin up
Eyes bright
I walk.
To learn more about my 108 Poetry Challenge or to donate click here.
Two Rivers
I stand at the junction
of two rivers
one flows towards my home
the other to the ocean
I have a boat
which one do I choose?
the ocean – sweet, salty, strong, mysterious
terrifying
washing my heart with salt water
cleansing my skin, pores, eyes, nose, ears, mouth
but I am going home
to the softness of the lakes
and the softness of my mother’s touch
where I will be held
by my family
by the rolling hills
by the kind forests
by the warmth of knowing a place and being known
I am going home
to where the winters are colder
and the fires are brighter
and life isn’t complete without a beaver tail
to nanas and pas
and cousins now married
and I’ve missed it all
but no longer
because I have my boat
and I am going home.
To learn more about my 108 Poetry Challenge or to donate click here.
The Temple
The roses still bloom by the temple
As if unaware of the tragedy next door
The temple that held the fire,
It keeps the fire of our hearts,
And kept the forest safe that night.
A community brought together
A man with a boat brought us the ladder
Many men and women fought the fire
Many women and men prayed
Stay together, love each other.
Don’t pretend to be who you are not.
The temple burns and we remember who we are.
She who created the rose, created the fire.
To learn more about my 108 Poetry Challenge or to donate click here.