It’s Poetry Friday and thank you to Catherine Flynn at Reading to the Core for the lunar goodness she shares and for hosting today.
I’m still writing outside each day this week (so far). The weather is perfect and the beauty is deep, but perhaps it’s the painful conflict in Gaza and Israel that keep me running outside, praying, writing and seeking hope. More info about: Write Out – Place-Based Learning with the National Writing Project, which continues for 12 more days.
Climbing Abel’s Mountain
makes me feel
powerful and plucky
There’s no path
just rock upon rock and
cactus and dried brush —
thorns jump out to bite my legs
and poke through my boots
I feel that weeks-old
sprained ankle
but I keep going with
twinges of pain
I feel powerful and plucky
It’s a short hike to the top of the
mountain and unlike the bear who
went over the mountain
to see what he could see
and all he could see was
the other side of the mountain–
there is a reward on top
A place to sit
for travelers like me
Joshua’s Perch is here
to rest and ponder the
big sky view wider
than my eyes can hold
Panorama upon panorama
the breeze is more than
a breeze up here
it’s windy and I’m glad
I brought my jacket
I sit and write and pray
and I know poetry
is in this place
in every place
and remember that
the view is always wider
than my eyes can hold
God, I still believe
your eyes can hold it
Thanks for the photos, Denise. What a beautiful vista you have for inspiration. Loved
I sit and write and pray
and I know poetry
is in this place
in every place
Denise, this is beautiful and brought tears to my eyes. Those same lines that Rose mentioned resonated with me, too.
Beautiful poem and photos, Denise! The last stanza is so full of hope. Thanks for taking us outside with you.
Yes, to Jama’s comment of taking us outside–breathtaking and refueling views, with hope too, there and in your poem. And what an inviting place to sit and rest for a bit, and share it with poetry, thanks!
Thank you for putting in the legwork to be able to share that spectacular panorama. I hope your ankle is feeling better!
While I do not hike or climb to high points, I did so virtually while reading your poem with a fabulous ending. I also took advantage of reading your other posts to see the poems you are writing. Keep on writing because poetry is in many places, Denise. Thanks for sharing your vista that is so different than mine.
ooooh! I love your photos. The scent of sun-soaked brush on a hill is delicious to me. I can see why you climb to this perch to pray and write. It’s beautiful. What a great place to be these days.
Poetry is in this place indeed. Thank you for sharing your journey and your views.
What gorgeous views and skies! There is definitely poetry to be found no matter where we look and good to
“remember that
the view is always wider
than my eyes can hold”
This sounds like such a cool challenge. I like writing other places beside home, but lately they’ve been inside places: a concert and a marching band competition in a stadium, most recently. I love your “upon”s and your “powerful and plucky.” And, weirdly, I just wrote a draft of a poem that included a sore ankle! So strange!
Thank you, Denise for your words and photos. The impossible blue of that sky is inspirational!