Archive
FRIDAY’S POEM FROM “RHYTHMS AND CYCLES” – The Chamber of Time
One of my favorite teachers, Martín Prechtel, is a master of languages, among many things. He teaches that the Tzutujil Mayan language has no verb form of “to be.” This makes it very interesting to speak of the past or future; in fact the Mayan peoples don’t seem to mind this “missing” grammatical component and are quite happy living in the present! Would Western civilization be a bit more content if we stopped using “to be.”
Imagine the possibilities!
With this in mind I riffed off one of Martín’s teachings about living in the middle of time for today’s poem:
The Chamber of Time
What if reality is nothing more
than a huge echo chamber?
Time in this reality is nothing more
than an echo returning.
The Holy, Goddesses, Gods
are nothing more than our
reflection in this chamber.
And we, nothing more than theirs.
To be sure the rhythms, ebb
and flow, dynamic play of
Light and Shadow in this
Hologram are a multidimensional mix.
The chaotic complexity settles
into karmic patterns, polyphonic,
kaleidoscopic interplay of
a multivalence array, to be sure.
And the echoes, like the breath of the
Holy, like our own rhythms,
beats, breaths, reverberate
Through this panoply of reality in time.
©2014 Richard W. Bredeson. All rights reserved.
MONDAY’S POEM: Breaking Free
The theme of the week is “possibilities.” This is the week of Rosemary’s Possibilities Playshop scheduled for Saturday, September 20, 2014. To pursue possibilities requires change. Change requires breaks. I wrote today’s poem almost 5 years ago but it seems to pertain well to the theme of the week!
Breaking Free
Who of us knows
how to break free
with grace, with ease,
with a light heart?
Break; the very word
has a jolt to it.
There’s a stopping to brake,
but an ending to break.
Yet, there’s an essential
to breaking which can’t
be ignored. Without it
there is nothing new, nothing free.
Every movement requires a break.
Every freedom requires an ending.
There is a grace to the slow dance
And a leap of heart in the advance.
©2014 Richard W. Bredeson. All rights reserved.
PS: If you are in the Annapolis, Maryland area join us for the Possibilities Playshop!
MONDAY’S POEM: The Moon Grows Swiftly
There’s a full moon tonight, 9:38 East Coast time. Have you ever watched the moon rise in the east as the sun sets in the west? It’s a lovely dance and inspired today’s poem. Enjoy!
The Moon Grows Swiftly
The Moon grows swiftly now,
Swelling to fullness in the next moments.
Her laughing face puffs to the edges
As Sun peaks over the horizon to see
We get the joke.
In her relief she feels no shame,
But jumps up to live her glory.
She gazes whole-heartedly toward
Her husband who sinks quickly out of sight,
Avoiding her glee.
And we are caught up in the juggling act,
Between these mighty space beings;
The wife standing at one end of the world,
Rising sharply; the husband sheepish
In his disappearance.
Sky of blue hues and brilliant reds and golds
Fades and darkens to blackness.
And the yellow Mother shifts her happy face
Through shades of cream to milky-white,
To steady, more serious light.
©2014 Richard W. Bredeson. All rights reserved.
FRIDAY’S POEM FROM “RHYTHMS AND CYCLES” – Light and Dark
I love this time of year; fall is my favorite season. For me the season actually begins with Lammas, that special cross-quarter day in early August when the harvest begins (and it is my birthday!). Now as we move deeper into September and toward the Autumnal Equinox the light begins to play tricks with our eyes. It’s as if the ripe crops of gold are reflected in the light itself, that golden quality that speaks of rest and peace.
This week’s blogs have been about the light, we humans as “the Light of the World.” But let’s not forget Father Sun, Grandmother Moon and all the Celestial Lights to show us the way!
Light and Dark
The Moon waxes to fullness and light.
The days wane to deeper darkness.
The lush green begins to dry and fade.
The shade of Sun’s shine turns gold.
Shadows shrink with the rising Sun.
At noon, high light, they disappear.
With the onset of evening they grow
Long again blending with the dark of night.
Moods wax and wane with cycles and seasons.
Blood ebbs and flows with the pulsingThree Lights.
Choices are many, path forks lie ahead.
Seek light to illuminate those less shadowed.
©2014 Richard W. Bredeson. All rights reserved.
MONDAY’S POEM: Anger
Life is so interesting! Last week I finished a summer series of Qigong classes with the theme: “Transforming Emotions to Virtues.” I followed the Five-Element scheme so deeply rooted in Chinese approaches to life and health. And my first class several weeks ago was on the Wood Element and transforming Anger to Creativity through Forgiveness.
Today, as I searched through my archives and journals for a “Monday Poem” I came across this one I wrote in February 2010. This was a few years before I began my intense practice of Qigong and study of the Five Elements! But even then I knew how to transform Anger. And yes, my predominant element is Wood!
Anger
It’s easy:
Just fear the mistakes,
Fear failure.
How does that feel?
Anger is a defense.
Anger trumps pity.
It is better than loathing.
It can feel good.
Anger can be productive.
It can motivate.
It can compensate,
And cover insecurity.
Mostly it destroys.
Shiva rises and
Clears the path
Through the waste of failure.
Anger operates at
An instinctual level.
Grow and forgive.
Breathe and live!
©2014 Richard W. Bredeson. All rights reserved.
FRIDAY’S POEM FROM “RHYTHMS AND CYCLES” – The Four Directions of My Life
Here is a personal poem from my “Rhythms and Cycles” collection. The theme of this week’s blog posts has been about bringing more light into the world. This is a way I do that:
The Four Directions of My Life
Vision: The rising Sun
Pulls me forward to reveal
Deep Truths to be shared
With the many. These truths
Are my Truths, your Truths.
This is my work in the world.
Growth: The summer Sun
Pumps juice through the green grass
To feed the many. It all starts
With the grass. Throw open the tent flaps
To the purifying Sun.
This is my work in my home.
Rest: The setting Sun
Pacifies the heart, stills the soul
To a quiet place. Yet in that stillness
Lies a deep potential for Love.
There is a strong slow Earth-rhythm
Waiting to awaken me to ecstasy.
Generation: The hidden Sun
Propels me toward new vision,
New growth; the next cycle is about
To begin. The spiral of life
Through days, months, years holds
Me to a certain course toward Love.
©2014 Richard W. Bredeson. All rights reserved.
FRIDAY’S POEM FROM “RHYTHMS AND CYCLES” – Muluc
This week’s posts have been about tools for self-knowledge. I use many tools to continue and further my journey. I have used a number of card-decks over the years from versions of the Tarot to “oracle-style” decks that bring a message or an affirmation to my days. I am currently using the Mayan Oracle Cards and enjoying the openings to that source of revelation.
The other day I drew Muluc which suggests we read the signs and understand the symbols that come to us. These are signals from the Universe, working to awaken humanity to a higher calling. I wrote the following in response to the card. I am putting it in my Rhythms and Cycles collection because the awakening process is ongoing and cyclic; we awaken in levels as more is revealed to us and we peel away the layers of forgetfulness.
Muluc
Perception is everything. It is truth, beauty, wisdom, and ultimately salvation.
And we can change our perception in a blink or a breath.
Perceive the signs from the Universe that are available moment-to-moment.
Open to all that your senses, all of them, have to tell you.
Listen with your heart. It is the largest sense-organ and cannot be filled!
Muluc is the key that turns the lock and opens all the senses to remember.
Star-children are awakening to Truth.
The key is turned, the lock undone.
Remember! Re-member!
©2014 Richard W. Bredeson. All rights reserved.
MONDAY’S POEM: Leo Sun
I wrote today’s poem about three years ago under a Leo Sun. You probably know by now I was born in Leo, my wife, Rosemary is also a Leo (same birthday!). I have a brother, Jerry who is a Leo (also same birthday!). Our nephew is a Leo. Today is my sister-in-law’s birthday – making her a Leo. And, last and best, our new grandson, Tristan is a Leo! Wow, a lot to celebrate! And we still have a few more days with Sun in Leo to continue the celebration. My poem today is dedicated to ALL LEOs! Enjoy the Sun!
Leo Sun
Our newest Leo, Tristan
Seek the light within;
This is where the fire burns.
It is a golden light,
A speck of the burning Sun.
Breathe in the golden beams;
Feed the inner fire.
The Lion Heart consumes
The flame; rejoice!
Bright August frames
This happy time
When inner shines so bright.
Rejoice, again rejoice! – before the night.
©2014 Richard W. Bredeson. All rights reserved.
MONDAY’S POEM: Transparency
I have several ways I reach inside myself to gain insight (inner sight) into energies around me, intuitive knowing within me. One way is to use cards of various kinds: everything from a number of Tarot decks, to spirit and goddess cards by several authors and artists. I recently picked up a new set of cards that has been in our collection for some time but had remained untouched – The Mayan Oracle deck by Ariel Spilsbury and Michael Bryner. There is deep wisdom in these cards and the writing describing them. I am enjoying the study and the guidance they are bringing to me. I particularly like the subtitle: Return Path to the Stars!
Yesterday I drew a “lens” card, Transparency. I am challenged by it to become more open, clear-minded – like a canvas on which to paint a new self! Today’s poem came from considering this challenge!
Transparency
An open book, a sheet of white paper
Waiting for words, reaching for wisdom.
A gateless gate, the clear sky beyond
Flowing to then, leading to lessons.
A faceless face, the makeup in jars
Tempting the soul, offering a mask.
Five empty lines, a staff with no strokes
Begging for notes, listening for music.
It all begins somewhere, nowhere, now
In the emptiness and purity of light.
This is transparency!
©2014 Richard W. Bredeson. All rights reserved.
A FRIDAY POEM FROM “RHYTHMS and CYCLES” – Community
Today’s poem is a reprise from about this time last year. I”m putting it in Rhythms and Cycles because a community is all about rhythms and cycles: the rhythms of working and playing together, singing and dancing; and the cycles of creating, expanding, breathing a community into health and wholeness. And it is about birth! We continue to celebrate the birth of our newest Grandson, Tristan! His closest community is pictured here:
Community
Safety
Numbers
Together
Family
Extended
Tribal
Sharing
Working
Playing
Singing
Stories
Dancing
Creating
Caring
Healing
Wholeness
Heart Center
Love.
©2013 Richard W. Bredeson. All rights reserved.
