A very honest and earnest account of extremely real fear - it was such a pleasure to read. Your use of the repetitive/overlapping phrases here was excellent, and set the tone perfectly. Thank you!
This poem is breathtaking, it really is. Everything I love about being a sentient human creation. You put words to it in ways I don't think I ever could. Thanks for that.
Wow--what a beauitful poem! That first line: "God created an ocean in me, a vast depth even I am terrified to tread" --a line so beautiful, awesome, frightening, real and honest. Like the ocean, so vast and deep and beautiful and breathtaking, our own inner land and seacapes can be challening to engage. Thank you!
This is SO wonderful. Thank you for sharing every detail as you have here. As I've been commenting above, it's such a treasure to see such a high and unbridled quality of love from so many of us for this wild place. What is this power that renders us so?
Your poem is a beautiful expression of that feeling for me :)
Thank you for this beautiful meditation! We’re also preparing for a move and I’m envisioning a cozy space surrounded by trees and creeks where our son can learn how to run and play in the arms of nature.
Wow, I learn and feel so much with every little glimpse of that life you share with us. Thank you for doing so in such a loving and respectful way. It's my pleasure, Steven.
I hadn't thought about just how far I have come (literally and metaphorically!) in terms of what the word 'seaside' brings to mind until I wrote this today... so interesting how much these words cause me to reflect each day - thank you Kaitlin for giving me this space again :)
Wow, Larry. Wow. I keep enjoying using this word, but this poem is magnificent. The depth of exposure and vulnerability here is profound. I love the rhythm and weight of each words; you've placed them so well.
"not sure if turning around was an option that mattered" - Masterpiece.
Wonderful. I was transported to the shore and a can feel it but also the intimacy being shared with it. "My sigh pierces the rush of waves" and the "salty sensuality". Amazing. Then you close it with "truth". Wow.
Thanks so much for witnessing this lovemaking (truly, I can call it nothing else), Steven. I’m particularly grateful to be seen by the sea 💗 I’m glad you liked it too!
Seaside
I stand on the edge
of the seaside shore,
the waves gently
lapping at my feet.
The call is to come,
come out to the deep,
but my feet won’t budge
from the sand.
The deep is unknown,
not safe, not safe,
and I might not
make it back home.
But the water keeps calling,
calling my name,
wooing me in
with the promise of more.
I want to go deeper,
go deeper still,
but first I must
leave from the shore.
A very honest and earnest account of extremely real fear - it was such a pleasure to read. Your use of the repetitive/overlapping phrases here was excellent, and set the tone perfectly. Thank you!
Sitting on the sand
Staring at the Sea
Wondering what to write
As I think about me
Wondering where I fit
As the breeze softly caresses
Free right now this moment
From all the daily stresses
They often ask
Mountains or Seaside
Easy to answer
With the tide as my Guide
It's clear that's easy for you to answer :) I love this love here.
It's also so nice to see myself in so many others' works today, how much we are all whole and free and refreshed at the seaside <3 Thanks, Jimmy!
Funny thing is that I used to answer “mountains” when that question was posed, but now I live on the ocean and go to beach nearly everyday
a full-clan recess, year after year.
sunrises, dolphins, dune-top hot tub;
sea glass safaris and duck do-nuts;
italian ices, old bay,
& drinks with umbrellas.
Love, joy, peace; all fruits covered.
Tribe of 10, epic.
Thinned by 1, colorless.
I live by a lake large enough to be called an inland sea
but it isn't
On stormy days we can hear the waves blasting against the breakwaters and bluffs
The sound is energizing and terrifying in turn
On sunny days the color of the lake is bluegreenaqua
We drink the water and it is good
The fish can only be eaten occasionally
Alewives no longer die on the shores replaced by algae that grow deep in the clear water
Cruise ships dock
Sailors dance their boats in the wind and water
The seas and oceans are our mother
The seas and oceans nuture our craven souls
To be seaside is to be at home and at peace
I have to use a few words only to say, no words. I love this so much. Thank you, Leslie <3
Thank you Jillian, your few words are very meaningful to me. Blessings
saltwater crashing
heals; cycles now again, and
again present here.
Thank you <3
Short one today from Vivienne:
I’m at the seaside today at night
Come on, says a friend, let’s swim tonight
I lived at the seaside forever and ever
Did not live in another house, never never
God created an ocean in me,
a vast depth even I am terrified
to tread, uncontainable-
it’s okay to start on the seaside,
my shoreline of leaping edges
laughing around ankles.
This poem is breathtaking, it really is. Everything I love about being a sentient human creation. You put words to it in ways I don't think I ever could. Thanks for that.
Wow--what a beauitful poem! That first line: "God created an ocean in me, a vast depth even I am terrified to tread" --a line so beautiful, awesome, frightening, real and honest. Like the ocean, so vast and deep and beautiful and breathtaking, our own inner land and seacapes can be challening to engage. Thank you!
I have never felt more alive than
when I am near the ocean.
There is something about
the rush of waves,
the smell of salt on the air;
a place that is so expansive -
so breathtakingly inexorable -
reminding me to breathe, to take up space.
There is something about
the endless lapping of water on the shore,
the ever-present breeze;
a place that is always in motion -
always making noise -
inviting me to be still, and quiet.
There is something about
the blinding reflection from the sea,
the impossibly beautiful sunsets;
a place that is hard to look at -
and hard to look away from -
giving me permission to exist fully,
unapologetic.
This is SO wonderful. Thank you for sharing every detail as you have here. As I've been commenting above, it's such a treasure to see such a high and unbridled quality of love from so many of us for this wild place. What is this power that renders us so?
Your poem is a beautiful expression of that feeling for me :)
Thank you!
This relaly brought me right to the seashore. Your poem evokes the seascape so vividly: sights, sounds, smells. What a gift!
It is past (mari)time
to go coastal
plunk down
by the seaside
soothed by sights
massaged by sounds
of bird and surf
into primordial bliss
bone of bone
flesh of flesh
water of life
home is where
the ocean is
Plunk.
I'm glad to relax in this moment by this ocean. Gorgeous, Bob.
"soothed by sights, massaged by sounds" Mmmm, so good.
Thank you for this beautiful meditation! We’re also preparing for a move and I’m envisioning a cozy space surrounded by trees and creeks where our son can learn how to run and play in the arms of nature.
Best wishes for your move coming up! May your son and you all run and play every day!
Thank you so much!
From the sounds of it, your son will probably do just that :) That's wonderful. Blessings for this transition!
The Kenyan coast,
Welcomed me in,
To it’s lukewarm water.
I had never felt an ocean,
So warm, so inviting.
The salty water,
Clung to my freckles,
Wanting them,
To dive in as well.
seaside
I have never seen
the water so blue
and so deep
only we were there
that small group of us
surfaced
off the coast of the
Bahamas
no land in sight
just men on a swim call
diving off
fairwater planes
steel beach to
enjoy the sun
easy to forget
why we were there
what we would do
before and after
that respite
it amazes me still
the beauty of creation
and that is
reflection of
the glory of
YHWH
and a witness to
the creating grace
and power
therein
Wow, I learn and feel so much with every little glimpse of that life you share with us. Thank you for doing so in such a loving and respectful way. It's my pleasure, Steven.
We did that once. It was the "no land in sight" that blew me away. Thanks for the flashback.
You're welcome
The childhood memories
of buckets and spades
sandy sandwiches
and a bracing wind
blowing over Scottish seas
have given way
to the adult longing
to stand quietly still
gazing at the expanse of the horizon
watching the beauty of the setting sun
over the Pacific
(for me, its the rising sun over the Atlantic) (still gazing)
I hadn't thought about just how far I have come (literally and metaphorically!) in terms of what the word 'seaside' brings to mind until I wrote this today... so interesting how much these words cause me to reflect each day - thank you Kaitlin for giving me this space again :)
Seaside
One day, lost and bewildered,
Not certain of what the next steps might be,
I wandered to the sea.
Wild and rowdy ocean coastline,
Long sweeping white sand beach,
Essential life force for the birds and the sea creature;
a refuge for weary wanderers likes me.
Each of us feeding on what sustains us.
Confused and broken, I walked.
Miles and miles, not sure if turning around
was an option that mattered.
It was then, on the cold and windswept
shifting seascape before me,
That I realized: turning around
was less about going back then
Going forward.
There among the bleached driftwood,
battered lobster traps,
strewn seaweed and rainbow shells,
whirling pools where all is forgiven,
it was there, by that humble and roaring seaside,
that life found me again.
Wow, Larry. Wow. I keep enjoying using this word, but this poem is magnificent. The depth of exposure and vulnerability here is profound. I love the rhythm and weight of each words; you've placed them so well.
"not sure if turning around was an option that mattered" - Masterpiece.
Thank you so much <3
I can smell the sea salt
My contribution:
Seaside
.
After a long day,
I walk to her blazing shores
And pull off my shoes.
My sigh pierces the rush of the waves
Ahhhhhhh
Oh, I can definitely go here,
Salty sensuality filling my nostrils.
I roll up my pant leg,
I gaze out, hopelessly
In love with her horizon.
Oh, this is definitely home.
I close my eyes and
Still, she holds me,
My teacher lover who has
Been by my side
Every time I’ve asked her to.
Someone once said,
And maybe I did too,
Here, I am never alone.
I look up to the sky,
See the clouds rolling past,
Off to find another day,
And that’s the only truth I need.
Wonderful. I was transported to the shore and a can feel it but also the intimacy being shared with it. "My sigh pierces the rush of waves" and the "salty sensuality". Amazing. Then you close it with "truth". Wow.
Thanks so much for witnessing this lovemaking (truly, I can call it nothing else), Steven. I’m particularly grateful to be seen by the sea 💗 I’m glad you liked it too!
This is a truly beautiful poem, Jillian. The depth of the love you shine and share, and the powerful pull of your wisdom run through every line.
Thank you so so much, Larry. Your words continue to encourage me to go deeper, shine brighter. I'm very blessed <3
Better late than never:
Gulf Shore
In a chair...
On a beach...
By the gulf...
Only the seagulls for company.
Waves breaks...
Gulls cry...
Breezes blow...
As the shore restores my soul.
Karri Temple Brackett
May 17, 2023
https://themarvelousandthemundane.com/2023/05/17/gulf-shore/