Men and The Goddess

The last poem I published here was a reprise on a poem about grief that I wrote in 2016. At the end of March 2020 we were all grieving in various ways for all the losses we are experiencing. And we still are…

In Chinese Medicine grief is about the lungs, about breath. It is about air, the Chinese element of Metal. And the flip side of grief is inspiration – that inhale half of the breath; the flip side of expiration. So, as I wrote last time, we move to transform grief into praise; praise for all the healthcare workers and all who support them, from First Responders to the janitorial staffs. And as we grieve for all the losses we praise the work of all employed in the critical efforts to keep us all going, from farmers and grocers to drivers and builders.

Grief to Praise. Loss to a New Way. Death to Life. Exhale to Inhale.

Leaving and Grieving

The air is heavy with a metallic tang;
Lungs heave, souls leave,
Those who remain grieve.

Do you hear the sound of death
Echoing across the globe, the
Noise of passing and saving?

Are you quiet and safe, remaining
Inside, moving deeper in your
Journey to another way?

Breathe in that safety, surety that
This change is good, passing.
There is a new way on the other side.

Many are leaving, the rest are grieving.
The light seems dimming, shadows
Creep across the world.

Yet dawn is coming as the world turns.
Light will reveal the path
Outward, inward, leading home.

©2020 Richard W. Bredeson. All rights reserved.