makes me think of the wild horses, here in the west where I live, they are rounded up in a most inhumane way by helicopters, no longer free albeit still wild. Some survive. Some do not. The one who captured my heart: a mare who turned to "fight" the helicopter in defense of her family. She was captured and lives now in sanctuary.
Wow, your comment touched my heart too. Thanks for bringing this. I've long had a tender spot for horses, and they came up just yesterday, moving me through many feelings.
Once again through the horses, this story feels like a powerful example of survival precisely. I'm sorry to hear they have a paradoxical existence in your area, but celebrate knowing spirit is strong nonetheless.
Ha! Thanks for that, Chuck. Actually, when I sat down to write, I started hearing a bit of a bluegrass melody or so, and that heavily influenced the outcome. Nice you picked that up ;)
Jillian, this is a remarkable piece! It is sometimes said the best poetry is meant to be spoken, and I can hear this marvelous poem being spoken and/or sung aloud. It has a beautiful rhythmic cadence and a sweet flow across the landscape of emotion and feeling. You mention bluegrass in a reply to Chuch, and I thought of the wonderful band Rising Appalachia putting your words to music. Blessings to you.
Oh, Larry. Wow. This is a masterpiece. I think it might be your most moving for me yet.
I wanted to pull out lines I loved so much ("surviving the cataclysmic destruction of all that allows us to survive," "scampering proteges," among others), but... there are so many I can only say: the whole thing.
As someone coming from the conflict resolution world, I think you are asking so many of the right questions that have long been pending. Yet, I LOVE the way you command your entire space as one who knows exactly what that is and masters it, no more and no less.
Thank you for your kind and generous affiremation, Jillian. The light you shine through your kind and meaningful affrmation and support of others, includuing me, is truly beautiful. Thank you for the joy of being you.
We are all connected. Our survival individually and collectively as a species needs us to be aware of our being “tethered together”. Thank you for these words I have read over and over. They sustain me.
Really beautiful. I appreciate the perspective about cooperation and connection as beckoned by survival. That was thought provoking for me. As I read more and more of these beautiful words, I'm starting to get a softer idea of survival from those, like you, who see tenfold light in it.
"You look broken yet you live in full treeness"! Yes!
So so wonderful. I'm enjoying your poems so much from day to day. Today, I am inspired by how compassionate these words are, how much space you give little stripped trees to be all they have ever been, exactly as they need to.
I think your sense of the big picture of each of your pieces is exquisite. Thank you!
Oh, Jillian! What a beautiful reflection. The way you are "seeing" this poem brought to mind the notion that I can give that same space to myself, to be all I have ever been, exactly as I need to. You can't know how much this touches my heart and my spirit. It helps me know that as I write about these outer things, I am speaking to the little one who is part of me and listening intently to my words.
Thank you so much for sharing this and yourself, Saoirse - I feel and celebrate deeply all that is moving within you.
It is a profound thing to recognize that our qualities we use to serve others can, first and foremost, be turned to ourselves and serve our precious light. I so honor all that you recognize inside yourself, and your acknowledgement of the tender one within you nourish along the way.
Lines on a page
Words on a screen
Paint on a brush
Yarn on a book
Hands in the earth
Headphones in my ears
Potatoes in the oven
Finches in the birdbath
Sunlight on the cottonwoods
—as necessary as air, as water, as love.
This feels like a beautiful transcendence of the usual confines of survival. Simple, certain, loving. Thank you!
This is lovely, Lisa. I love the earth centeredness of the poem! Thank you!
Survival
Sometimes survival is receiving a medical diagnosis
Navigating your way across the rivers of medical jargon and procedures
And emerging on the other side.
Sometimes survival is experiencing the death of a loved one
Plodding through the longest days and darkest nights
And learning how to live again.
And sometimes survival is lying down at night
At the end of an ordinary difficult day
And whispering to noone in particular
I’m still here.
Karri Temple Brackett
May 6, 2023
"I'm still here." Powerful words.
“Learning how to live again” What a beautiful way to describe survival. 😌
A little late, a straggler, but day 6! Thank you so much, Kaitlin, for holding this space.
Survival
I don’t need no’ mo’ survival,
A swing and a miss,
A broken kiss.
I won’t be begging’ fo’ yo’ survival,
I have all I need,
I’m a fuckin’ queen.
This isn’t a case of lost survival,
Shattered dreams,
A touch too extreme,
You’re not my boss, you ‘ole survival,
I’m not down and out,
I’m free and about.
But where have you gone, you sweet survival?
The wild plains?
A country drain?
Who have you touched, you raw survival?
Can they have more?
Were you just a bore?
I send you grace, you dear survival,
Your journey’s long,
No one brought you along.
You need love, you precious survival,
Just like them and me,
You be wild and free
(Softest love to those that still survive <3)
(Softest love to those that still survive <3)
What a lovely end note. Indeed.
makes me think of the wild horses, here in the west where I live, they are rounded up in a most inhumane way by helicopters, no longer free albeit still wild. Some survive. Some do not. The one who captured my heart: a mare who turned to "fight" the helicopter in defense of her family. She was captured and lives now in sanctuary.
Wow, your comment touched my heart too. Thanks for bringing this. I've long had a tender spot for horses, and they came up just yesterday, moving me through many feelings.
Once again through the horses, this story feels like a powerful example of survival precisely. I'm sorry to hear they have a paradoxical existence in your area, but celebrate knowing spirit is strong nonetheless.
I hear jagger tuning this up.
Ha! Thanks for that, Chuck. Actually, when I sat down to write, I started hearing a bit of a bluegrass melody or so, and that heavily influenced the outcome. Nice you picked that up ;)
✌️
Jillian, this is a remarkable piece! It is sometimes said the best poetry is meant to be spoken, and I can hear this marvelous poem being spoken and/or sung aloud. It has a beautiful rhythmic cadence and a sweet flow across the landscape of emotion and feeling. You mention bluegrass in a reply to Chuch, and I thought of the wonderful band Rising Appalachia putting your words to music. Blessings to you.
Sometimes Survival Is Enough
Live to tell the tale.
When survival means lying still on the floor
Pretending to be dead,
Inured to the screams and gunfire echoing around,
Survive.
When dying in body or spirit is the alternative,
Run.
Sometimes surviving is the best we can do.
“When the boys came out to play, Georgie Porgie ran away.”
He’ll live to fight another day.
Survive.
When the darkness is all-encompassing;
When nothing seems real but the pain.
When there is no escape from now;
When living is not an option,
Exist.
Survival is the only hope for tomorrow.
Bullies don’t win until we stop.
Survive.
Exist. Survive. Hope. Resist. Live.
The only winners are survivors.
I love so much how you give compassionate room to all the survival that needs to be for some of us.
We're all on a journey; we can all only do and be what we are and have.
I love that you get it, Jillian. “We're all on a journey; we can all only do and be what we are and have.” So true and so well-put.
“When the darkness is all-encompassing;
When nothing seems real but the pain.
When there is no escape from now;”
Sigh. Thank you for these words - they meet me in the depths of my soul. Although I no longer exist in that darkness, I did for many years.
You survived…and beyond! Congratulations, Karen.
Powerful and hopeful at the same time
Thank you for sensing that, Steven.
Survive. Exist. Resist. Live. ... Yes.
:repeat:
This is a powerful poem, Bruce. Thank you!
Thank you for the encouragement to be real, Larry. Blessings!
Blessings to you my friend. Thank you!
Woof.
Survival
Early weekday morning,
Spring hesitant to arrive,
We sipped coffee and I heard
At a nearby table,
“our very survival is at stake.”
And a reply—"we are not going to survive.
That ship has sailed.”
I thought “what is survival?”
Is it just getting by; existing, managing?
Is it thriving while other suffer?
Will it be surviving the cataclysmic destruction
of all that allows us to survive?
I do not know.
Is survival possible in a dog eat dog world,
each capitalist for themselves;
species extinction
sacred spaces desecrated;
the very nature of sacred and holy
commodified and inaccessible
to so many of our kindreds.
Ruthless narcissistic autocrats,
and their scampering proteges,
speak louder than the voice of silence,
than hearts beating for justice,
than rainbows across the sky,
except when they don’t.
In those quiet moments,
The choice seems clear.
Survival could be just another competition
in our zero sum games,
where only a few brutal or random souls
stand at the top
and wonder what to do with the wasteland below?
Or it could be one more opportunity
To stand together; eyes wide open,
hearts on fire, beauty and balance
defining our every breath.
A trail lined with hope and joy,
celebration and song,
marked with compassion and kindness.
Led by spirits of right relationship
and keepers of the deep wisdom.
The destination for both paths may be the same.
Some of us may even get to choose.
And both will be abundant in fear;
but only one will be filled with love.
Oh, Larry. Wow. This is a masterpiece. I think it might be your most moving for me yet.
I wanted to pull out lines I loved so much ("surviving the cataclysmic destruction of all that allows us to survive," "scampering proteges," among others), but... there are so many I can only say: the whole thing.
As someone coming from the conflict resolution world, I think you are asking so many of the right questions that have long been pending. Yet, I LOVE the way you command your entire space as one who knows exactly what that is and masters it, no more and no less.
Thank you!
Thank you for your kind and generous affiremation, Jillian. The light you shine through your kind and meaningful affrmation and support of others, includuing me, is truly beautiful. Thank you for the joy of being you.
survival thoughts
on coronation day
the crowds gathered
to see the new king
and royal family
while the remnants
of royal and colonial
oppression linger
nations pillaged
people enslaved
lands raped for riches
tribes obliterated
so a man could wear a crown
surviving a privileged life
the scandals of
an affair during his unwanted marriage
the fracturing of his family due
an outsider that due to her
background and ancestry (her color)
isn't worth the love of his son
the panama papers
showing how much money and land
the family has stolen from nation
that was "justified" in stealing it
from lesser nations
but he and others out of touch
from real life with poverty
violence
trauma
and death that isn't celebrated
with state ceremonies and successions
but this king will "survive" the day
and be adored for what he has endured
and the least of these will survive
being ignored by his "highness"
as these intertwined survival stories
demonstrate the true meaning
in the beatitudes
blessed are the poor
Wow, goosebumps after reading this. You've said everything precisely and powerfully, and I honor the truth that you share shining.
It's a wild, ferocious, survival-tempting day today indeed. A lot to think about.
Thank you so much
This is very powerful Steven. Blessings to you.
Thank you. Blessings to you as well, Larry
If I’m quiet
I can sense
Life force energy
Coursing
Swiftly seeking
Connection
In everything
Knowing
Survival needs
Us to be
Tethered together
Kindred
We are all connected. Our survival individually and collectively as a species needs us to be aware of our being “tethered together”. Thank you for these words I have read over and over. They sustain me.
Really beautiful. I appreciate the perspective about cooperation and connection as beckoned by survival. That was thought provoking for me. As I read more and more of these beautiful words, I'm starting to get a softer idea of survival from those, like you, who see tenfold light in it.
Thank you!
"Connection / in everything" Yes.
I really appreciate this poem, Sarah. Remarkable what can occur in ther quiet. Thank you.
Survival
All I can do
is get through
the next
minute
hour
day
week
month
year.
Day Six: Survival
I count survival
as the-best-I-could-do *then.*
In this time, I live.
***
little tree
still alive
still leafing out in Spring
as if your skin did not split
after an early freeze
then peel
and fall to the ground
leaving no cover
for your soft white inner core
as if the forester did not sever
your trunk
in an attempt to save your life
leaving one branch
askew and tilting to the side,
still green
still drawing nourishment
from the earth
from your roots
still reaching to the sky
each spring
you stand
unfurl your leaves
offer a spot of shade
just to the side
of your slender
deeply scarred trunk
you look broken
yet you live
in full treeness
Powerful use of metaphor. I’m that little tree still alive, living in full treeness. Thank you for the mirror.
Thank you for finding yourself in the metaphor. That is always a gift to a writer.
"You look broken yet you live in full treeness"! Yes!
So so wonderful. I'm enjoying your poems so much from day to day. Today, I am inspired by how compassionate these words are, how much space you give little stripped trees to be all they have ever been, exactly as they need to.
I think your sense of the big picture of each of your pieces is exquisite. Thank you!
Oh, Jillian! What a beautiful reflection. The way you are "seeing" this poem brought to mind the notion that I can give that same space to myself, to be all I have ever been, exactly as I need to. You can't know how much this touches my heart and my spirit. It helps me know that as I write about these outer things, I am speaking to the little one who is part of me and listening intently to my words.
Thank you so much for sharing this and yourself, Saoirse - I feel and celebrate deeply all that is moving within you.
It is a profound thing to recognize that our qualities we use to serve others can, first and foremost, be turned to ourselves and serve our precious light. I so honor all that you recognize inside yourself, and your acknowledgement of the tender one within you nourish along the way.
This is beautiful! I love the vivid imagery and the sense of what could be. Thank you!
Yes, the sense of what could be. Glad you saw that. Thank you!!
I did not think I could get through
My world fell apart
I could not survive that
Day after day
The sun rose
I pulled myself up
And kept going
I was surviving
Then came the moment
The time to decide
To resolve not just to survive
The goal is to live
To find ways to thrive
And now I wonder
Is this growth
This strength
This courage
What it looks like to survive?
what u do where u r at to get to where u want to be.
at 16 it was brain, trying to hit that freakin' curve ball.
At 66 it is body, arm-wresling my colon.
different/same.
kinda like resistance.
kinda like. indeed.
I relate, Chuck!
(I figured guys might be able to)
Carry on.🙂
Is that all there is
Survival of the fittest
Let's get flourishing
Yes! Let's all get to the flourishing part. Together.
Survival
A walk through the woods
revealed a young thin tree
with branches outstretched
as if like arms reaching up.
In the midst of the arms
was a much bigger tree
who had fallen over,
only to be caught
and held
by its younger neighbor.
What if we could do the same
for our neighbor?
Maybe the chance of survival
would be greater
for all of us.
So so wonderful. An exquisite portrait of tender love. No questions to ask, just moving with awareness and compassion. Thank you!
To survive or to thrive,
Or thriving despite barely surviving?
In a world of either or,
Why can it not be both?
Can we survive with gentle weapons
Can we win with reason
Must survival always be a contest of winners and losers or can we be as gardeners and nuture the world
When must the peaceful way rise up to meet violent foes on equal ground
This beautiful world of music and literature against an angry mob
I am ready to be called to loving battle
I will find a way to carry on
"Can we be as gardeners and nurture the world?" YES! That's the right question.
I would very much love to be a gardener! Thank you. Brilliant.
Thank you!
A curling inward,
a lashing out;
survival is a response,
rather than a choice.
May we survive;
may we fight, fly, or freeze
our way to safety.
And then,
may we choose;
may we, enveloped by
relative safety,
choose to envelope others.
May we blanket the world
in tenderness
so that we may all
thrive.
I love the lines "May we blanket the world in tenderness so that we all may thrive." Indeed. You give us a wonderful place to begin.
Thank you!