Garden of the Heart

My heart is filled with seeds

Seeds of love, joy and peace

Seeds of anger, fear and despair

Which do I water?

Which do I feed?  

My heart flows with energy

The light of attention brings growth and strength 

The darkness of inattention weakens and kills

What do I water?  

What do I feed?   

I open my heart to all.

I see the longing 

The longing for goodness

For justice

For peace

I speak hope

I speak joy 

I speak life

All of our hearts are filled with seeds

Which do we water?

Which do we feed? 

Our neighbors' hearts are filled with seeds

(and everyone is our neighbor)

What do we water?  

What do we feed?

What do we give?  

Can you notice?  

Meet anger with kindness

Hatred with love?

Knowing the seeds of peace reside in every heart 

Waiting to be seen, watered and fed?

  

No simple task

No simple task, this gardening of the heart

Understand.
This is real

This is very real

Your kindness

Your love
Your compassion
Your smiles

Change the world

One seed at a time

One heart at a time

If you're smiling right now
You are watering some good seeds
If you're smiling through heartache and pain
Even more so
Bless you, bless you, bless you

May all beings be filled with loving kindness

May all beings be free from suffering

May all beings be well

May all beings be at peace

May all beings be joyful

Video of me sharing this poem at Drum up for Peace event

I've lost the source information for my images.  Many of them have been found at: https://www.enchgallery.com/fractals/fractal%20gallery%201.htm
My apologies to the creators of this amazing art.  

Calm. Calm. Belong

https://www.enchgallery.com/fractals/fractalpages/contiuum.htm

Her beautiful smile shines

From photo after photo

She remembers

That she knew

Always knew

She didn't belong

An expert chameleon shaping herself to fit

Blend

Belong

The internal outsider

Sure that her otherness was sensed

Hiding behind the laughter and smiles

Imposter

Lie

Brittle

Separate 

She looks through those photos 

And knows

Understands 

. . .

She always belonged

Always

Sweet, sweet child

There are no lines

But those we imagine

Those we were given and believed

The lines and divisions 

Are the lie

Never you

Never you

Calm

Calm
Belong

Those barricades can only hold for so long . . .

She began to breathe

To breathe at the thought of such freedom

She stood and whispered to her child.  "Belong"

She held the child and whispered

With calm, calm; "Belong"

R.E.M. "Belong"

https://www.enchgallery.com/fractals/fractalpages/spirogid.htm

Melting Open

Every morning

Every morning

She woke to the ache in her chest

Day after day

Week after week 

Year after year

Like an old friend

Waiting to greet her

 A perennial knife in the heart

What am I afraid of?

* * *
What am I afraid of?

She protected herself

Encasing what she feared

Within a thick, hard shell

Never to be seen
Only felt

What am I afraid of?   

Then, one day

Her eyes were opened

And she laughed

There is nothing big and scary

I've only feared myself!  

Afraid my heart

Might lead once more to suffering and ruin

Not to be trusted.
Not smart enough

Not strong enough

Not good enough

Oh, dear heart
Oh, precious one
The heart is the wellspring of life
You can trust your true voice
Listen!
It is goodness and love
Be not afraid

And her heart melted open

My heart melted open

I am falling in love with myself

Fractals can be found at:
enchgallery.com

https://img00.deviantart.net/7f07/i/2018/054/5/2/fractal_heart_by_fractist-dc44b96.jpg

Angela

You were an orphan on this planet

Abandoned by your father

Abandoned by your mother

Alone

You fought

Oh, how you fought

Building internal strength

Pushing, stretching, reaching

Creating a life for yourself

Embracing color and light

Speaking your truths

Feisty

Playful

Vibrant
Exuberant   

Alive

Through the years

You fought the monster in your head

As it worked to break you

The disease given you by your mother

Another demon

Promised to destroy you

Bit by bit

Day by day

One day

Unexpected love showed up

Seeing past the darkness

To spectacular, amazing you

A dream you'd not dreamed.

You stepped in

Into goodness and love

Into sweetness

And magic

Cocreating new life
Together you loved and welcomed
Your many fur babies
Into Catlandia
A place of refuge and safety

But

The monster and demon

Were too much

We didn't see

We didn't know

You have slain your monsters

And we are left

With an empty space 

Where once there was sparkle and light

All we can do now
Is cherish what was.
Carry your essence with us
And look for the sparkle in others
As they grapple with their own
Monsters and demons
Your love and light
Your true essence
 Will remain
Part of us

Fractal images at: http://www.enchgallery.com

https://huntingtonsdiseasenews.com

One Heart Beat

Our hearts are one

As we play our drums

Guitars, voices, shakers and flute

Cowbells, tambourines and dancers, to boot

Many voices become the one

Joining. Flowing

Shining.  Glowing.  

Taking us places

We cannot go alone

Some songs may seem sweeter than others

Some beats might seem a bit . . . off
But

All are part of the one song
in which we live

I am new here

You welcome me

With kindness and love

You tell me my voice belongs

That I have a part in this song

Thank you

Our hearts are as one 

As we sing our songs

Dance our dances

And beat our drums

We are One Heart Beat

http://www.enchgallery.com