Saturday, February 13, 2016

A Thousand Years of Living



When we walk through speckled landscapes 
                           where the shape-shifters dance,
we are walking in the footsteps of the ones 
                            who came before.
There are signposts they have left us 
                            all across the forest floor.
A thousand years of living - we don't set our sail 
                             by chance.

We are walking in the footsteps of the ones 
                              who came before.
The Old Ones' songs I hear upon the breeze.
A thousand years of living - we don't set our sail 
                               by chance.
I sing wolfsong to the mountains and 
                               knock on midnight's door.

The Old Ones' songs I hear upon the breeze,
under my feet the brittle leaves of summer past.
I sing wolfsong to the mountains and 
                           knock on midnight's door.
The night air whispers: here you are at last!

Under my feet the brittle leaves of summer past.
There are signposts they have left us 
                           all across the forest floor.
The night air whispers: here you are, 
                           here you are at last!
Walking through a speckled landscape 
                                 where the shape-shifters dance.


One from the fall of 2013, kids, shared for Poetry Pantry at Poets United, where you will find good reading to go with your coffee every Sunday morning.

33 comments:

  1. Another beautiful poem showing how we are all connected, past and present. Indeed there are signs if one looks carefully!

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  2. "A thousand years of living - we don't set our sail
    by chance."...love this firm voice Sherry...

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  3. reading your poem, Sherry, am reminded of the ancient lore that gets dismissed out of hand, as superstition, by those, who "know better". Maybe, one day, we can see the wisdom, in these folk legends.

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  4. I feel that here, too.

    Beautiful.

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  5. So incredibly beautiful! WHEN are you going to do a book??? I may have said this before, but it's worth repeating – many of your poems, including this one, would be candidates for my 'I Wish I'd Written This' column, except that my readers are already your readers too.

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  6. Oh, my! I so wish that I had written this, Sherry. It's truly exquisite.

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  7. Amazing ! The beautiful sentiments. We should always respect our ancestors be it in any form humans or animals, they are our guiding light.

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  8. Really this is wonderful Sherry, to feel those traces, the secrets left by those before. This is probably a favourite of mine,

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  9. Beautiful... those shape shifters dancing and conveying messages to us..if we care to watch and listen!

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  10. A thousand years of living - we don't set our sail by chance...

    Fine words in a beautifully musical piece.

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  11. amazing, Sherry. this is just beautiful.
    it really sings to me.

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  12. I could hear the beat of an ancient drum and your words echoing off the forest wall..it is good to appreciate and respect the speckled landscape as we make our way through the trail xo

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  13. How beautiful it is to walk the forest with you. Safe too with Wildwoman by our side!

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  14. Thank you, Sherry! This is like visiting the hands of time. I will wonder who hugged the sacred Oak, before me~ Beautiful and forever green~

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  15. There were much to savor in a leisurely walk along the forest floors where wolves could be just as friendly. Superb lines Sherry!

    Hank

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  16. I love your speaker's awareness, how everything speaks to her in the language of the universe, her inner-vision...

    And the following lines play like a drum in my witchy soul:
    "The Old Ones' songs I hear upon the breeze,
    under my feet the brittle leaves of summer past."

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  17. The repetition of key lines throughout brought me to this special place where our ancestors have walked. Indeed musical words to dance by the moon and fire light!

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  18. the song that emerges from the repeated lines is lovely; an enchanting walk shared

    have a lovely St Valentines Day

    much love...

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  19. This is one of my favorites, dear Sherry, this villanelle of love:
    "I sing wolfsong to the mountains and
    knock on midnight's door."
    WOW!

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  20. 'We are walking in the footsteps of the ones who came before.'

    Indeed. :-)

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  21. Love the feel of touching your past and a kindred to nature in your words.

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  22. You capture the journey so well of those footsteps...I often look for those signs in the woods. They are everywhere. That twisted tree the arrangement of rocks. The ancient ones left signs for interpretation. Continue to look for the signs Sherry.

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  23. Your poetry and your subject matter is so wonderful! Echos of the past, present and future!

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  24. Love the line ' we don't set our sail
    by chance.' ~ good when life goes in conscious way... ~ how nice, when nature recognize and greet you again and again, and you feel one with all...~ beautiful spatial poem!

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  25. It always feels like home when I visit this blog, beautifully written Sherry! I totally believe 'we don't set our sail by chance.'

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  26. This is beautiful. I has the feel and truth of ancestral wisdom. I like what Rosemary said about you writing a book. I think it will be magnificent.

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  27. "...where the shape-shifters dance"
    Love that "picture"
    Wonderful piece.
    ZQ

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  28. Sherry,
    Your poem confirms thoughts that we are indeed passing along following the footsteps left for us to make our way in this tough old world. With experience and our knowledge, we are now leaving footprints of our presence, for the next generations to pass behind us. I sincerely hope we have something worthy to leave behind, considering the demise of so many natural environments and habitats..I try!
    Eileen

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  29. Such a beautiful poem. Makes me feel closer to my ancestors to know part of me is part of them also.

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