The memories of times spent together
Photos on the dresser, haunting
Pajamas scattered in the dresser drawers
Treasures with no measure, though
They can’t compare to the greatest gift
That still surrounds you
The love your deceased still has for you
The love you still have for them
A love everlasting
What about me in twenty twenty-three
What will I do, what will I see
Will I finally conquer grief
See the light, attain reprieve
Will I travel to a foreign land
Will I walk along the shores of white sand
Or begin to understand
The meaning of God’s demands
All questions without answers now
Perhaps a visit to Curacao
Or be bold and allow
Myself to just be in the here and now
Or will I wallow in self-pity
Tossed against the shore of enmity
Can I reach out tentatively
And discover a new identity
Can I find the will to take a chance
Find love again by happenstance
Know without doubt upon first glance
To once again dance that dance
Will she be loving and sexy
A lover to sweep away my emotional debris
To once again feel carefree
To float away on an endless sea
Of love
Photo by Khadeeja Yasser on Unsplash
During a contemplation last week, I realized how fortunate I’ve been to have been surrounded by love my entire life. I took that for granted for most of my life, not realizing how special it was. During this contemplation, I had several revelations I would like to share.
When I met my wife, Nancy, for the first time, I fell instantly in love. At that moment, I realized that I had never been in love before. Real love transcends time, space, and logic. It simply is.
I felt complete. Little did I know at the time that love is never complete. It is constantly expanding. My first realization of this was when our first child was born. When you hold that special soul in your arms, you feel as if your heart could burst. That love continued to expand through the years as we experienced this with two more children.
My point is this. Love is a never-ending journey. Whether we are here in the physical or elsewhere, even if we wanted to, we cannot escape it because everything in existence is sourced from God’s love.
Grief is a love trainer. It’s akin to starting a workout program where your trainer tells you to forget what you think you know and do this instead. Little by little, through the aches and pains, you start to become a new you. You become stronger, more flexible, and can take on new projects you’ve put off for too long. Your world becomes more effortless. You have more energy and a better outlook on life. Your light begins to shine again.
Grief is your spiritual trainer. Not one you chose, but one nonetheless. And like a fitness trainer, it breaks you down before it can build you up. And grief is a trainer you can’t fire. You’re stuck with the task master. You can try to fight it or run from it. None of this will work. If you want to gain all the gifts grief has in store for you, simply immerse yourself in it. Go with the flow. Allow it to ravage you. This is the greatest of grief’s gifts.
It cleanses the soul in preparation for the new life you are about to be born into. A life filled with new adventures and endless possibilities. A life that has been handed to you with blessings from God. The only question that remains is, what will you do with it? It’s entirely in your hands. Make it a miraculous one.
I’ve played
My life has been an orchestra of love
Those I’ve loved are the notes I have played
I sincerely don’t know what I’ve done
To deserve the chance to conduct this heavenly serenade
I‘ve conducted a wonderful symphony of souls
All the sharps and flats creating a gravitational mass
An inimitable universal love that unfolds
A treasure chest of love that I’ve amassed
Sing to me my choir of shining stars
That I may sail away upon your wings
Let’s erect our personal spiritual alcazar
A palace to share our heartstrings
Let me sail away upon your perfect harmony
Scaling notes beyond human comprehension
As all our love melds with eternity
While we entertain each spiritual dimension
A puppet on a celestial string
the dance of moonbeams
across cresting waves
lends to daydreams
of hopes I’ve yet to attain
footprints in the sand
stragglers left behind
ballads are sung by a heavenly band
urging me to stay aligned
waves lapping at my feet
I stare into a starlit sky
this human form seems obsolete
its existence hard to justify
I’m just a contestant in this game show
a puppet on a celestial string
a player in God’s minstrel show
a soul on the wing
sun peeks above the horizon
casting tangerine across the dawn
I’m tripping on nature’s psilocybin
this heavenly phenomenon
Originally published at https://medium.com/poetry-publication/a-soul-on-the-wing-7834636ed097
Think of all the experiences in your life that led you to this moment. The joys, the heartaches, the friendships, and the losses. Each one of them is a part of what makes you who you are today. But more importantly, who you will become tomorrow. Did you stop learning to ride a bike when you fell for the first time? Did you quit trying to do better in school, at a job, or in relationships when times were hard? How about your first dive off a high diving board? It’s all scary stuff, but you pushed through it all and learned so much about yourself in the process. You learned you were a survivor.
You see, that is why we are here. To learn the hard lessons. Earth is a cruel planet, and human history continues to prove this every day. It is the place where we, as souls, learn we can rise above anything. God provided one tool for us to succeed at this. Love. Not just the messy human love that is truly wonderful, but divine love. A love that has no attachments. A love that recognizes everything in existence is divine love.
To have any success in human life requires the ability to face our challenges head-on. To recognize that they are not the end of our world. They are the stepping stones to a more fulfilling life. Each challenge we face provides us with an opportunity to discover the real reason we chose to incarnate on this most difficult planet. To become a Co-Worker with God. To be a channel for divine love. To fill our hearts with gratitude for even the most difficult challenges we face here.
When we face up to and conquer these challenges, the gifts we receive are limitless. For then, we can tap into divine love at any or every moment in our day. We have become an open channel for It. Those close to us see the change in us. They can’t quite find the reason why they always feel better when they are in our presence. All of life responds to this flow of Divine Love, from the smallest particle to universes.
God is love. God created everything. Hence, everything is love. When we become aware of this at our deepest core, life becomes simpler, richer, and more meaningful. All of life that surrounds us responds in kind.