Searching

With nothing to guide me
but the star at my back....
I set my course for away.

Whispering prayers of longing and release,
I grasp the cool air, breathe it deep....
view it transformed into the essence
of what I can become.

The sword at my side glints wickedly
mirroring the smile of he who awaits....
and the jewelled hilt brings back a memory
of blue eyes, both deep and serene.

Driving for the forest....refusing to ponder
what dangers may lay ahead....
leaves blown from my path
as though a zephyr passes through
and one foot follows the other
in an intricate dance of mystery and invitation.

The star behind is now hidden...
vanished behind the blackness of tall trunks.
Wandering blind
I search still.

DLD/31AUG07

Listening to: End of the Road (Kim Waters), on iTunes SKY.FM Absolutely Smooth Jazz.
Celebrating: Five more weeks of summer break. Classes begin on Oct 8th. :)

A Magical Journey through the History of Modern India

#43 - Midnight’s Children, by Salman Rushdie
Finished 8/31/07
Rating: 4/5
Total Pages: 463
Reason for Reading: Literature Network
REVIEW: I very much enjoyed Midnight’s Children, my first Rushdie novel. This book has often been compared to Marquez’ One Hundred Years of Solitude, for its qualities of magical realism. I agree, but I found Midnight’s Children to have much more of a sense of reality than One Hundred Years of Solitude. Midnight’s Children is the story of Saleem Sinai, who was born in Bombay at the stroke of midnight on August 15th, 1947 – the same day that modern India was “born.” The book makes a running commentary on religious and political matters in the nation, using parallel occurrences in the life of Saleem as a counterpoint. Rushdie’s writing is intensely detailed and involving. Even the most mundane of daily activities, such as making chutney, are brought to life with delightful colours, scents, and sounds. I’m left feeling that it needs to be re-read strictly for the purpose of fully enjoying all the intricacies of Rushdie’s masterful use of language. Highly recommended.

the spilling

within me
a building intensity,
a threatened smothering
that demands release...
a submersion into emotion
uncontrolled

my body feels ill-conceived
to contain within its boundaries
this thing
this sea swell
that fills up and spills out

flowing from me
in a voiceless cascade

DLD/30AUG07

Listening to: Better Now (Collective Soul)
Watching: Comfort & Joy

Maelstrom

There have been times
when disaster seemed to court my every step.
My heart, desire, my very being
captured in a whirlpool.....
ever spinning, ever drowning....
the waters pulling me down
.....down
..........down
until even breath
threatens to cease.

That whirlpool pulls our limbs
every which-way, all at the same time....
so misdirected as to be misinformed,
unable to focus, unable to imagine escape,
unable to see beyond the blackness
of the swirling maelstrom.

So easy to
give up.

Yet even whirlpools and maelstroms have endpoints,
and yes, we are spit out the other side...
.....eventually
...........and with strength and determination
a firm set to the chin
a glint in the eye
and a sense of humour
about what just happened (!)
we can rise above those tattered sails
and battered hulls....
and find a new island...
a place and a time
to begin again.

Would I choose to brave that maelstrom again?
Not sure it's my choice. :)

But yes.

Being inside the chaos
is the only way to appreciate
the serenity that follows.

DLD/28AUG07

Listening to: Roll with the Changes (REO Speedwagon)
Ran out of: Amazon DVD credits till September 14th. Ack! What will I do??? :P

Very Little Happens....

...in one day's work, as you can see by comparing these two photos. :)

But I do like it when they open their eyes. Hehehe.....

Caught

Caught
within a swirling maelstrom
feet lifted from sea bottom
while my spirit yet sinks....
I struggle to regain my footing
but am swept away over and over again.
Recovery seems torn
from my grasp.

Shall I surrender to the waves....?
give in to the urge to
breathe deeply....
fill my lungs with salty remembrances
of past disappointments....
Shall I sink into memories....?
resist the pull of the future....
or refuse the tides that call me home.

DLD/27AUG07

Stardust

To be born within stardust
Afar from the shackles that bind us here....
Can we be born again, on the far side of the universe?
And still continue our earthbound journey?
At once?

If this is possible,
I shall send my wings skyward
.....now.....
I shall pry thy fingers from my ankles
.....now.....
I shall lift thee from thy knees and take thee with me
.....now....
and we will travel there
as one,
floating high over this
troubled world....

I will wipe the worries from thy brow.
I will capture thy spirit within mine own.
I will hold thy heart in the palm of my hand
and whisper words of grace.

If this is possible,
then I wish it for all.

DLD/26AUG07

Listening to: Everybody Hurts (REM)
Planning: A day of utter laziness. The paperwork can wait.

One-Stitch, Two-Stitch

It's a long weekend in England, so I've taken a day away from books and writing and forms and decisions. Now that my glasses are updated, and now that my eyes have had enough rest, and now that I've moved the furniture in my room to give better light, I found for the first time in a year that I could sit and enjoy my cross-stitching again.

I'm sure this will be a short-lived burst of energy. It takes hundreds of hours to complete a project like this. I won't have that kind of time on my hands until all this schooling is done. But today -- for now -- I loved reconnecting with thread and needle, painting colours on my canvas. This piece is called Bundle of Bears, and will eventually become a Christmas stocking for my granddaughter. The design is by Donna Vermillion Giampa, and I'm stitching it on 28-count white Cashel linen. (Click on the photo to enlarge.)

i fall

i fall
into you

into your soft words
that create a melody
within the
quiet

into your soft embrace
that surrounds
my world with
gentle

into your soft eyes
that see my faults
and view me
beautiful

into you
i fall

DLD/26AUG07

softly

softly
come to life
stirring gently in the morning warmth
consciousness arising....slowly, quietly,
climbing up from the depths of sleep

gradually
the dream-mist slips away
leaving pools of reflection....
memories of before-that-happened
imaginings of what-is-still-desired
watch silently as the visions
swirl and drift...
join to one

the past and the future
become now
softly

DLD/26AUG07