sunlight

Sunlight
rests gently upon my sleeves,
sheltering
then moving
throughout the anxious turning
of the breeze.
A storm will no doubt arise
from beneath the layers of
such warm, dark
summer nights.
Wait
for the cloudburst torrent of rain
coming restlessly to wrap up the world
in its garments again.

the matrix

It's no a secret that I'm afraid
of a lot of things in this world.
All the right-winged left-brained people
keep telling me
(over and over)
that there is nothing to fear.
However -
because I am afraid of exactly them
- it doesn't help.
Help!

How can I tell you how I feel?
You are like the grass,
root and blade
growing into my heart.
You are always new life -
a fresh patch of pasture -
a sure place of rest.
My heart is different now,
green, soft, and ready.
In a world of drought,
You keep sprouting.

a favorite

The Old Poets of China


Wherever I am, the world comes after me.
It offers me its busyness. It does not believe
that I do not want it. Now I understand
why the old poets of China went so far and high
into the mountains, then crept into the pale mist.


Mary Oliver