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Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Night Whispers

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The portal of the night
illuminated by moon
and silvery-etched clouds
promises cosmic mysteries
to the dreamer
who navigates by the stars.
The faint inky outline
of the mountains,
hunched together  
like sleeping giants,        
casts a shadow
across the land
where once
the Old Ones walked.

There are spirits
abroad in the land 
this night.
I can feel them
close, but just beyond
my sight.

Grandfather Cedar towers,
black against the starlit sky.
On the fencepost,
an owl's yellow eyes
are fixed on my passing
like a messenger
from the other world,
an oracle,
a harbinger,
a soothsayer,
a feathered prophet.

What are you
trying to tell me?
I ask.
What is it that I
need to know?

Looking up,
all is beauty,
all is peaceful,
all is silence,
all is promise.

I feel the spirits, near,
the eyes of the ancient ones
looking at me with unspoken request.
I see the world as it was in the Old Ways,
shift my vision to what we have become,
weep for  the displaced, 
the dispossessed,
fur beings and humans alike,
who wander this disintegrating planet
in an endless quest
for sustenance
and peace.
Nearby and all across this island
are razed, desecrated slopes
where the Standing People
once stood green and thick and proud.
My thoughts turn to
the creatures that fly and slither,
that swim in  the oceans 
and lakes and rivers,
waters that now are ailing;
and to the polluted air,
the melting icecaps,
the damaged ozone.
My heart sends an apology
to the air and mountains,
earth and sky,
we Two-Leggeds have
so afflicted.

Owl tells me:
place your hands upon
the trunk of Grandfather Cedar.
Sink your roots deep into the earth.
Sing your song of love
beneath Grandmother Moon,
and send it on the midnight wind
to the ancient ones,
who will carry it
to their sweat lodges
in prayerful ceremony.

Yes, there are spirits here,
inviting us to broaden our vision
from the seen
to the unseen,
to clasp hands with the ancestors
who have come to help us heal
Mother Earth's
deep wounds.


38 comments:

  1. oWOOOO! I call into the land to add wings to your song on the way to the ceremony. I am sure the land feels your presence of which these words are merely artifacts and portals too. This poem entered me like my own breathing.

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    1. I feel the same, Sherry, with even more of a sense of night as a doorway. Standing in that open door gives a great perspective into here and there. Being related to all things gives you the right to stand cheek to cheek with the standing ones.

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  2. Oh, marvelous! I love "feathered prophet." That's really beautiful.

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  3. I love the last stanza, beautiful !

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  4. Owl is very wise, I think.
    A beautiful poem, Sherry.

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  5. I love the whole poem, as I read it...I thought oh, this stanza is my favorite, no this one! So I am going to say the whole poem is my new favorite of yours :D
    Love this!
    Brilliant~

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  6. I second what I had said earlier in response to your poem, Sherry. The Owl is very wise. We do have to listen to the spirits in our midst. And the answers will be given! I really enjoyed revisiting this poem.

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  7. I like these night moments when we are outside and nature speaks to us in one way or another. A time when we feel more vulnerable and more in touch with the wisdom of the Owl.

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  8. I wish more could hear the owls like you.. I think we need what we are destroying ... Wonderful writing Sherry.

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  9. Grandfather Cedar towers... and the mountains hunched together like giants... cool personification...and mother earth...she has deep wounds indeed... i wish we could ease her suffering

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  10. Humans are so myopic that even hints of thunderous proportions mean nothing as the tills clink with cash and the sweet sound of crisp notes deafen reason as they sleep mindlessly on while we have nightmares.

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  11. this poem is a prayerful ceremony too entering our being...exquisite would be an understatement...

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  12. There are times when the spirits seem very near! Beautifully expressed, Sherry.

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  13. A soothing night song:) would love to get lost in it.

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  14. our world is amazing isn't it? there are "spirits" everywhere and they have varied forms.

    the poem tells me that we should be aware and try to understand what's around us...

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  15. Sing when your soul commands you to do it…that’s beautiful! And what an inspiring poem you have shared here, Sherry!
    The owl spirit is emblematic of a deep connection with wisdom and intuitive knowledge. ....Great read!:)

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  16. I am lifted by your words Sherry ~ You always remind me of the beauty of nature and wisdom of creatures of the earth ~ Have a lovely week ~

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  17. Beautiful. I will try to remember this prayerful, calming, lovely stanza:

    Looking up,
    all is beauty,
    all is peaceful,
    all is silence,
    all is promise.

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  18. This is incredibly beautiful...gorgeous poem!

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  19. oh yes, let our's be steps for healing our beautiful blue planet

    have a nice Sunday

    much love...

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  20. What a big heart you have , Sherry! I join you, when you send apology to all creatures and nature.
    Love the message 'to clasp hands with the ancestors
    who have come to help us heal
    Mother Earth's
    deep wounds. ' ~ Much energy in the poem for all to read and act!

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  21. wow, this is easily one of the best you have written. one of the best on living with Nature.
    "My heart sends an apology..." : this is almost tear-inducing.

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  22. Great poem, such feeling and vividness in the words.

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  23. Very theatrical and deep. I can relate to this poem about nature. Somehow, someway, I could feel my Polynesian heritage in some of it as you mention "navigate by the stars." Thanks Susan for a very educational and green poem as this one.

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  24. to clasp hands with the ancestors
    who have come to help us heal

    Many fail to realize that subconscious attachments to the spirits of our ancestors have guided our destiny in more ways than one! Great word craft Sherry!

    Hank

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  25. We are all connected to the earth and sea and the sky. Needless to say, Sherry, I loved this piece and it's gorgeous message.

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  26. I feel you, Sherry. Beautiful writing and such truth in your words. I enjoy coming by to read your heart ;)

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  27. I was just thinking about baptism this morning and how powerful the elements are--water, sea, sky moon--and how we chart our lives by them--this feels like a sacred space you have created here Sherry

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  28. I love that Spirit that haunts your writing :-)
    ZQ

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  29. May we all broaden our vision to love this precious earth and care for her the way she cares for us. I hope you will participate in the Gratitude Quilt this year. It is simple to join in and will make your heart happy when you see the love unfurl on Nov 27th. (no sewing involved) Just close your eyes. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale. Ask yourself "what am I grateful for in THIS moment?" listen to your heart and type out the words that flow from your heart and send them to me. There is a link to my email address and a link explaining this project if you don't know about it yet can be found at the top of my blog. If I've already asked you I apologize for being annoying :-)

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  30. I like how you effortlessly move back and forth from description, to story telling, to meditating on spiritual truths.

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  31. Sherry a beautiful poem and yes there are spirits here..all one needs to do is open their eyes and ears and believe.

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  32. They are all around us ready to help, if only we would see. And yes, we have wounded Mother Earth - we should take better care of her.

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  33. I love the message of owl, which seems to me to tie it all together. May we indeed be able to heal those wounds!

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  34. I love this stanza:

    "Looking up,
    all is beauty,
    all is peaceful,
    all is silence,
    all is promise."

    So true.

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  35. The idea of night whispering is interesting...
    And you have wonderfully written them!

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  36. this is so atmospheric and informative. and i bet that owl is a wise one!

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