you do not have to be good

you do not have to be good

Strange times......

Mixed emotions and a life on hold for a few weeks as my mother dies and we wait for her funeral.

Creativity stifled except for brief moments when words flow.

The ability to express my emotions through written words is something I am grateful for.

So much easier than speaking out loud.

'You do not have to be good' wrote the poet Mary Oliver wrote in her poem "Wild Geese".

I find these words resonate right now.

When you mother is gone, there is no one to be good for any more.

The world is calling, and I have to decide how to be in it.



I wrote a few words last week, which I call a recipe for survival.

Recipe for Survival

Gather fallen leaves and petals.
moisten with gently lapping water.
Add some mid-summer dreams,
strands of curling fescues
and a melody of birdsong.


Mix all in the evening’s half-light,
then rest for forty days
in the distillatory of your mind.
Decant gently into a slender-stemmed goblet
and consume one small sip after another
until the day is done.




I was going to say so much more, but for now that feels like enough.
 

gather fallen leaves and petals.....