48 Comments

When I was younger,

I used to spend hours making

mud pies and potions;

sitting in the cool

shade with the earth in my hands

my most pressing task.

Expand full comment

"Potions" So good! You've captured the magical spirit of childhood perfectly and I see my own time in the dirt and woods perfectly here. Thank you <3

Expand full comment

Mud.

A brown, thick, viscous slurry.

In the movies it traps people in its mire.

In ads it’s an abhorrence only removed by the strongest high-priced detergent.

And yet.

I remember.

A long walk with my short-legged white Bichon Frise

after a bitter winter trapped together in the house.

He comes home

exhausted by the joyous romp.

I think I should be troubled by the mess -

But I’m not.

Sounds of boyish giggles as two boys slip and slide through the sprinkler’s shower on my front lawn.

They wipe the mud from their eyes

And then smear it on each other’s chests.

I’m not sure whose grin is bigger.

Mud.

Release after a long winter.

Laughter in the summer’s heat.

A symbol of spring, renewal.

A reminder of joy.

Expand full comment

"Mud. Release after a long winter. Laughter in the summer's heat. A symbol of spring, renewal. A reminder of joy."

This is incredibly good, Heather. A beautiful celebration of joy and delight, I'm grateful you pay attention to these details and share them here with us. Thank you! <3

Expand full comment

mud

there is something

fun

about playing in it

ask many children

or even some adults

and they will

grin from ear to ear

as they ponder

the possibilities

why might that be?

for me

it goes back to

the Judeo-Christian -Islamic

creation story

combined with

a little understanding

from biology and astrophysics

we are created from the

dust of the earth

and we mostly water

in our bodies

simply speaking

we are MUD

but more than that

we are special mud

created by God or universe

out of the dust from

stars from billions

if years ago

for me that explains

how Jesus used

mud

to heal the blind

and why

he scribbled in the dirt

for the people accusing

the woman of adultery

He was drawing upon

the stuff of creation

the stars

and light

to heal

individual and group

to engage them

in their creation

playing in the mud

enables us to engage

and heal

so, in the words of Jesus

"Go and do likewise"

Expand full comment

Oh, wow. I love this so much, Steven. I have a lot of thoughts about Jesus and the specifics of the way he worked in those days, and I'm delighted to add the image of this nearly-mystical creation in the mud.

And the last two lines - OH YES. I was basically out of my seat climbing when I got to the end here. I love it a lot, thank you <3

Expand full comment

Thank you

Expand full comment

Mud

When given the freedom,

kids will take mud

and make pies

and marbles

and sculptures

to dry.

May I give myself freedom

to reclaim what

was declared

undesirable

and make it into

something beautiful.

Expand full comment

YES. Go for it! :)

"May I give myself freedom to reclaim what was declared undesirable" - May this be, also, the movement for us all. Love love this poem, thank you for sharing <3

Expand full comment

No Mud, No Lotus

Advised the great Teacher

And what a lovely message

For those that yearn to reach her

Her being Mother Earth

And all her radiant glory

The divine feminine in all of us

Helping to write our story

We spend most our lives

Trying not to get muddy

Until one day we realize

That we’re all made of putty

Waiting to be molded and formed

As we learn to embrace the dirt

We joyfully come to know

That Love is the cure for hurt

The greatest learning occurs

In the midst of Mud and Mire

So lean into all of it

As you kneel right beside Her

Expand full comment

This is really wonderful, Jimmy, and I love the way you weave such beautiful pieces of wisdom into it throughout. A gorgeous braid. Really love this piece, thank you <3

By the way, I just have to tell you that I would love to see more of your writing on this platform and follow you :) It's beautiful.

Expand full comment

When I lived in Rwanda,

There were to seasons,

Rainy and dry,

Muddy and dusty.

Mud sticking to my shoes,

Muddy paths everywhere,

Mud clinging to me,

Mud clinging to you.

We spend so much energy,

Trying to remove the mud,

Instead of being curious,

Accepting and learning from it.

Mud sticks to you,

We can be muddy

Together.

Expand full comment

This one is wonderful wonderful wonderful, Liz. I love it so much.

"We spend so much energy, trying to remove the mud, instead of being curious" <3 Thank you for sharing these beautiful words.

Expand full comment

Mud is solitude-

a well-trampled path,

a melting pot of shoe prints,

an April sound.

Expand full comment

up sunny bunch

sculpt muddy gunk

chuck sludgy yuck

scrub mushy lump

dump runny rug

munch yummy lunch

strum rusty tub

hug grumpy cub

hush dusky hum

Expand full comment

Wow, this is very cool :)

Expand full comment

this one is beautifully messy.

thank you for this profound reminder of our rootedness in both childhood and dirt.

Expand full comment

Poem day 19

☀️🪶🌙

#creativetherapy

@kaitlincurtice #apoemadayinmay

Day 19: M U D

from within there comes the feeling that

hiding all the things that seem dirty

weigh us down

then comes a time when

as memory’s power has no hold

the freedom of light shimmering from a friend

their glowing smile reminds us

it’s ok to be who we are

For B.

💚✨

@sol_phoenix_mani

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CscOFu7tu2k/?igshid=ZWQyN2ExYTkwZQ==

Expand full comment

This is very beautiful, River Song. I think you capture a precious part of mud's essence. How important and how incredible that this is so very clear and obvious. Thanks for bringing your words <3

Expand full comment

Very nice River Song! It is okay to be who we are!

Expand full comment

Mud!

Ground and water colliding

In an intimate dance

Collaboration of counterparts

Becoming something new

Liquid Earth

Solid puddles

Mucky & Viscous

Various states of

In between

Many times, I am earth

Other moments

More water

Today, I am mud!

Expand full comment

What a beautiful celebration and dance you present here! Continue to enjoy :) Many blessings, Julie <3

"Collaboration of counterparts," love that!

Expand full comment
May 19, 2023·edited May 19, 2023

Allrite, DAMMIT,

ONE MORE TIME:

He made mud with spit and

smushed it on my eyes.

I wash and I see.

That's all I know.

Now get off my ass.

(I think I liked seaside most, it was personal)

Expand full comment

I touched on the healing the blind man as well.

Expand full comment

Two bible totin' bubbleheads, thinkin outloud. Nice..

Expand full comment

Love reading the dialogues between you both :) I learn something often.

Expand full comment

Fine Navy company

Expand full comment

I see you, Chuck, with all your squishy mud...

Expand full comment

Peek a boooooooo.🙂

Expand full comment

This is hilarious and also so wonderful. I think it's especially meaningful when we reanimate familiar stories like this in our own words. Thanks, Chuck!

Expand full comment

Mud is childhood

unsupervised packs mucking around, free

discovery

Mud is healing

glopped onto bee stings, trailside

salve

Mud is relief

elephants splattering on the savanna, cooling

restoration

Mud is terroir

fertile clay soil gooey with water, nourishing

tilth

Mud is matter

play, medicine, life-

giving

Expand full comment

I love the feeling of this journey as you take us through all these properties. Thank you much for that! Indeed, this is healing, and indeed, it is giving <3

This poem hits me very right. Well done!

Expand full comment

Mud

“Mud, Mud, glorious mud

nothing quite like it

that cools the blood”

happy, harmonious hungry hippos roar.

“Read it again,” Dad,

our sons squeal. And I do.

Not just once but many renderings:

Spoken, song, dancing, poem…

What a glorious time!

Romping with the wild things,

adventures in the night kitchen,

circles of life and goodnight moon,

creation stories and star cookies in the sky,

monkeys jumping off the bed…

World of wonder beautifully played,

small notes expanding the space,

living quietly in that present moment,

smiling faces and tired eyes holding my heart.

In this world of frenzied urgency,

hyper productivity,

constant measurement

and harmful commodification,

smiling children swimming in mud,

are our healers, repairers of the breaches

of the thin places of our minds and spirits.

Part hippo, part kokopelli, all joy,

The sweetest sounds the world can hear.

Mud, Mud, sacred, saving mud.

Watch out kids, I’m coming in.

Expand full comment

Wow, this one is very magical and very moving. Thank you so much for this, Larry, it feels like the medicine I needed today. There are so many things I love here, not the least of which is that you took me on a journey back through my own childhood, very specifically. Those books are so special <3

Been contemplating the medicine of children, youthfulness, and uninhibited joy in the way of the kokopelli tribe lately - your words resonate so well in the context of all that <3

Expand full comment

Thank you Jillian! You ring the silence with your insights, words and reflection. Ase!

Expand full comment

I really really loved your poem today, Kaitlin. Precious reflections. Thank you so much for sharing it with us <3

.

Mud

.

Mud is a cleanser,

She said,

And for all I want to argue,

I think that must be true.

Why then would I find myself in the garden,

Boots on, pant legs down,

Sleeves rolled up,

Planted in the dirt,

Searching,

Curious but also expectant.

I expect to find,

Many things

Maybe too many

Shimmering treasures wanting a new home,

Transformation,

Seasons shifting.

I know what I’ll find and

Still I look for it, content,

Moving through the

Motions in the mud

To make something new,

To bring pieces together,

Even if it means getting dirty.

.

Wish me be not stifled,

Plastic and clean

Wish me be not robot,

Just another machine.

I want to get out of the house

And romp in the mud,

Go far, wherever my follies take me.

Or maybe I’ll stay close to home -

Freedom, not far, is the virtue here.

Either way, I count nothing out,

Even if it means getting dirty.

Expand full comment

Another wonderful poem. I continue to love your phrasing choices. " I know what I'll find and...Still I look for it, content" and "Freedom, not far, is the virtue here." Thank you for the reminders.

Expand full comment

Thank you for your appreciation, Steven :) I’m so glad it touches you.

Expand full comment

Oh Jillian, so full of wisdom and spark! I hope you keep getting dirty and romping wild!

Expand full comment

Thank you so much, Larry! Oh, I promise, I'm not stopping anytime soon ;) I wish for you the same!

Expand full comment

I love this one today Kaitlin! I was mulling it over before I opened the email and was thinking about how mud is an annoyance when you’re an adult and a wonderland as a child, so I loved reading your words today.

Expand full comment