26 October 2009

Sit

Make no effort to block the thoughts

Don't stop the river

Let the waters flow

Watch it all go by


As the sun rises down the garden


A pheasant climbs

The pile of wood

Just sits, with the morning



[10 October 2009]

15 October 2009

Sunrise

After the effort
Everything put down

Back in its place

Just doing

What needs to be done


The morning so still

The sky to the west tinged with pink

The world beginning to awaken



[09 October 2009]

10 October 2009

108 for Daido Roshi*

Going on, going on
His Dharma carried so many

Going on together

Leaving the raft behind

He has gone beyond

Bodhi Svaha!



[10 October 2009]


* Refers to chanting the Prajñāpāramitā Mantra in memorial of Daido Roshi.

08 October 2009

What about

What about this morning?
What about today?


The mind just simply won't settle!

It cannot find the way!


The money plant looks melancholy.

The sky above is grey.



[05 October 2009]

06 October 2009

Full of Stars

Awake
With the morning star


Out in the cold

Clear morning


Exercising this body

Sharpening this mind


A rooster calls the day break

The dark sky still full of stars



[24 September 2009]

05 October 2009

Thus gone

The owl's eerie hoot
Has no location

In the dark of the early morning


The rooster's rousing crow

Comes and goes

Untouched by the cold air


The cow's sonorous groan

Reverberates

Shakes the morning, then subsides


Thus come, t
hus gone


[19 September 2009]

03 October 2009

No trace

The candles burn bright
But the morning sun

Is weak and pale


The mist clings on

Soaking the garden

Obscuring the view


The neighbours pigeons

Appear from the mist

Disappear into the mist


Leaving no trace



[13 September 2009]

Dark Morning

Grey clouds part
A bright crescent moon

Revealed, luminous


The clouds return

Black crows scatter

And wheel across the sky



[14 September 2009]

23 September 2009

Taking in the morning

Sparrows forage
Under the window


A robin cocks his head

From on the piles of bricks


In the distance

A cock crows


A dog barks



[10 Sep 2009]

19 September 2009

Two sides

Autumn sun
Low and raw

Burns into the house


On the shady side

Layers of mist
Shelter i
n the wet garden


[12 September 2009]

17 September 2009

Knotted

Stomach knotted
Head knotted

Impermanence comes home

Visceral uncertainty

Not knowing
Feels like

Stepping

Off a cliff

In the Dark



[11 September 2009]

18 July 2009

See


Cows


Clover


Clouds


Cool


Calm



[15 June 2009]

08 July 2009

Fractured

The candles burn low
With a single
*pop*
A fracture is announced

In the other glass holder



[07 July 2009]

07 July 2009

Alight

The shaft of sunshine
On the floor

Winks

On and off

With slow deliberation



[05 July 2009]

02 July 2009

What do you call the sound of rain?

First a gentle pitter patter
Then more and more

Small fine droplets

One after another, and altogether


Streaming down

Outside the window

Meeting the hedge


Leaf by leaf, and altogether

Bouncing and rebounding
Building a soft calming

Chorus of percussion



[29 June 09]

28 June 2009

Exercises

The mind free
Gently flowing


The body alive

Pulsing and tingling


Morning exercises

Body and mind



[18 June 2009]

Momentarily awake

Chasing down a tunnel
Trying to grasp a thought

Wrestle it to the ground


Suddenly self-conscious


The thought dropped

All that's left

Awareness



[27 June 2009]

23 June 2009

Morning Echoes

between incense and gongs
breath after breath

images flash


juicy golden succulent sweetcorn

smooth slippery warm new potatoes

rich salty spicy satay sauce

sour shards of crispy crunchy cabbage and carrot


last night's dinner

reflecting and rebounding

echoing in my mind

this morning



[22 June 2009]

19 June 2009

One of the herd

A Bodhisattva gently
Herds the oxen
With humour and humility
Always the student
Receiving with joy
Giving with gratitude
One offering after another


[18 June 09]

12 June 2009

Living colours

The black
Black earth

Fecund


Horse Radish leaves

Verdant and vibrant

Blades


Garden Mint leaves

Soft and silky

Tongues


The luminous

Luminous garden

Alive



[11 June 2009]

07 June 2009

Natural Order

When there's a question
Of the right order
In which to do
Things

Writing
Cleaning
Shaving
Showering
Dishes
Laundry

Pissing comes first


Gratitude
Honouring this body
And it's simple needs
It serves this life so very well


[06 June 2009]

04 June 2009

Simple

Somehow this morning
Being awake

In the world

Is more important

Than resting asleep


Running, stretching

Walking, sitting

Eating, showering


Each moment containing

A spark of joy

Simple pleasure

Happiness of being



[04 June 2009]

02 June 2009

Meeting

Poem scribbled
I bend to pack

Notebook and pencil away


Sudden stab

Foot meets thistle


OW!
















[30 May 09]

31 May 2009

Picnic














Warm sun of late Spring

Playful breeze


A pair of buzzards

Circle high overhead


Picnic in the hills

Boys off exploring the woods


Sitting still - for a moment


Caressed by Spring

And your gentle hands



[30 May 2009]

04 May 2009

Chopsticks

Brown rice and vegetables
All three eat with chopsticks

The sun shines in



[03 May 09]

29 April 2009

Hotel

This is not home
This carpet, this bed

This endless rumble of traffic

This blasting air-con

This bathroom


So I sit

Face the wall

And in awareness

Meet myself

Come home


The sun rises

And birds sing



[29 April 09]

27 April 2009

108 Poems #108














Rain comes down softly, then hard, then soft again

A robin hops, pauses, turns tail
Gone




[27 April 09]

108 Poems #107

Later in the evening
It is the delicate hint

Of a glowing crescent moon



[26 April 09]

26 April 2009

108 Poems #106

Eyes shut and eyes open
Dream states come and dream states go

Who does this house belong to?



[25 April 09]

25 April 2009

108 Poems #105

Phone call after email after phone call
The day flows by

Uninterrupted



[24 April 09]

23 April 2009

108 Poems #104

Planting candles
In molten wax

An endless cycle of rebirth



[23 April 09]

108 Poems #103

Open window lets the evening, the sky and a buzzing insect in
Open nostrils let the breath in

And out



[22 April 09]

22 April 2009

108 Poems #102

Waking slowly, step by step
Eyes open to the net of reflections

Dewdrop world in the morning sun



[21 April 09]

21 April 2009

108 Poems #101

In the garden, I'm just a guest
Yesterday it belonged to a yellow tulip

Today, a magnificent pheasant



[20 April 09]

20 April 2009

108 Poems #100

Vast array of stars above
The warmth of you in my arms

Home again



[19 April 09]

19 April 2009

108 Poems #099














Separated parts of me

Reunited with joyous laughter

Beauty in the warm sunshine



[18 April 09]

18 April 2009

108 Poems #098

The crunch of ginger
Burns pungent in my mouth

Still, I search for a taste of honey



[17 April 09]

17 April 2009

108 Poems #097

Blocked snot hurts
Steaming myself, my throat hurts
And now I need to pee



[16 April 09]

16 April 2009

108 Poems #096

After the brief thunderstorm
The evening is tranquil and moist

A frantically flapping pigeon leaves no trace



[15 April 09]

15 April 2009

108 Poems #095

Sitting in the fading evening light
My nose empties, drip by salty drip

Forty minutes later, it is still full



[14 April 09]

14 April 2009

108 Poems #094

Five minutes given fully
I meet myself again
Outside, stars but no moon in sight


[13 April 09]

13 April 2009

108 Poems #093

Sparkling, glistening flow of drips
Slide from my nose and off my lips

Splash down onto my fingertips



[12 April 09]

12 April 2009

108 Poems #092

A faint, most delicate and mysterious caress
Penetrates the haze of my head cold

The fragrance of roses



[11 April 09]

10 April 2009

108 Poems #091

Thoughts of yesterday
Creep up as I contemplate

Withering daffodils



[10 April 09]

108 Poems #090














In the cool of the tender dark evening

My nose tickles, trickles, drips

Ah-CHOO!



[09 April 09]

09 April 2009

108 Poems #089

Candlelight leaves no trace
In the evening sun. Incense

No fragrance in the breeze



[08 April 09]

Grip

cold wind and
a spattering of rain
hit my face

mixing with
bitterness and nausea
loneliness and despair

honking cries drift in
as a pair of geese
pass by in the distance

the burden
of choosing
a solitary life

feels so cold and empty
searching for meaning
and for purpose

with candles
incense
and gongs

and yet this subtle terror
doesn't lose it's grip
on my intestines


[28 March 09]

07 April 2009

108 Poems #088

Sitting sheep and
Glistening dew

Sunshine, bursting through



[07 April 09]

06 April 2009

108 Poems #087

Reflections, imperfections
Textures in the floor

Long shadows in the morning sun



[06 April 09]

05 April 2009

108 Poems #086

Rippling sunlight carried on a cool breeze
Dances through the curtains

Fills the room with light and air



[05 April 09]

108 Poems #085

In this space under tall trees
A cool breeze passes through

An ant meanders purposefully



[04 April 09]

03 April 2009

108 Poems #084

The world this morning
Stops at the hedge

Beyond, only mist



[03 April 09]

Don't know

The stream of thoughts, in swirling tangles
Settle down, to a gentle state of quiet
And in that space, comes realisation


I don't know



And all the times
I thought I did
Are all the times
I suffered so
Shutting out life
Shutting out people

And then a flood of sensations
Shock in the stomach, shaking shoulders
A throat full of sobs and gasps
As tears and snot stream down my face


My head hurts
My throat chokes
Making the four great vows
Flowing tears of regret
Gratitude and devotion

Waking up to my life


[02 April 09]

02 April 2009

108 Poems #083

Cooling candles creak
Circling crows croak

Calmly contemplating clouds



[02 April 09]

108 Poems #082

A sunny yellow daffodil
Gazing out the window

I forget the morning is grey



[01 April 09]

01 April 2009

The tone

Today's suffering is thinking
About the past

About the future


Wondering

What is love?


In a self-judgemental

Tone of voice



[30 March 09]

108 Poems #081














Glistening cells

And sweet juice
Fibres caught between my teeth


[31 March 09]

31 March 2009

108 Poems #080

Nothing seems certain
Least of all the movements of the heart

Undermined by a stomach full of doubt



[30 March 09]

30 March 2009

Reverence

Ideas of
poems

emails

phone calls


All drop away


Switch off the lights

And stand


In awe

Reverence


With

The slender crescent

The silver moon


Potent, yet

Delicate

Luminous


Present



[29 March 09]

Alight

if only I could
light an incense stick

on the incandescent

flaming golden sunset

that sets the room
and my heart

alight

I'd have no need
for matches



[29 March 09]

108 Poems #079

The sky whitens, tinged blue
The horizon glows orange

And the landscape darkens



[29 March 09]

28 March 2009

Locked

The morning breeze delicately
R
ustles leaves on the hedge
Outside


But can't reach

My barricaded heart

Inside



[26 March 09]

108 Poems #078

In the cold grey morning
A vivid splash of daffodil yellow

Solitary, nodding in the wind



[28 March 09]

108 Poems #077

Beauty in sorrow, sorrow in beauty
A single teardrop reflects

All that can be seen and all that is not said



[27 March 09]

27 March 2009

108 Poems #076

I see the world
Through dusty spectacles and dirty windows

Its beauty reduced to glimpses



[26 March 09]

26 March 2009

Daybreak

The mist sits in layers over the ground
The sky starts to clear


And a whisper of the moon

Fades in the south



[17 March 09]

108 Poems #075

heartbroken, heart aching
touched by the sorrows of the world

heart open, weeping.
then listening


[25 March 09]

25 March 2009

Gone

two small flames splutter
and then cease to be

surrendering to a brilliant
shaft of morning sunshine

incense smoke swirls
spreading tendrils across the room

fragrantly embracing the morning
and then cease to be


[24 March 09]

108 Poems #074

Leg muscles screaming
Thoughts wandering

Intimacy arrives with each breath



[24 March 09]

24 March 2009

108 Poems #073

Shadows sharpen
As the sun warms the morning
After a blustery start, tranquillity


[23 March 09]

23 March 2009

108 Poems #072














hot from running
, resting
the mind almost absent, aware

sensations flow with the view,
gazing


[22 March 09]

22 March 2009

108 Poems #071

A gentle breeze whispers
Between the vast sea of stars

And the damp grass underfoot



[21 March 09]

20 March 2009

108 Poems #070

An imperfect lawn. Look closely
Myriad forms of life and beauty
Emerge into being from the earth


[20 March 09]

108 Poems #069

In the mist shrouded morning
Bird calls and wing beats

Echo round and back



[19 March 09]

19 March 2009

108 Poems #068

Sitting quietly, tears rise
On a tide of gratitude and love

I miss my older brother



[18 March 09]

18 March 2009

108 Poems #067

Cool weak sunshine
Filters through the clouds and mist
Painting white reflections on the floor


[17 March 09]

17 March 2009

108 Poems #066

Everything calm
Unhurried, effortless

A bird glides across the sky



[16 March 09]

16 March 2009

108 Poems #065

Spring here
The hedge fully trimmed
Blue sky floods the window


[15 March 09]

14 March 2009

108 Poems #064

Woolly grey clouds fill the sky
Then they part

Revealing the vast brilliant blue



[14 March 09]

meeting

step by step
breath by breath


caught up in thoughts

speeding up


unentangled

slowing down


damp grass in the garden

lambs bleating in the field


hills on the misty horizon

traffic announcing itself


meeting the morning

as it comes to meet me



[13 March 09]

108 Poems #063














Walking in silence

The morning orchestra

Reaches out with its offering



[13 March 09]

13 March 2009

108 Poems #062

Searching for words
But hitting a wall

Yesterday's worries, still here



[12 March 09]

12 March 2009

108 Poems #061

There's nothing here, nor there
That need be spoken of
Silence has no inadequacies


[11 March 09]

11 March 2009

108 Poems #060

Racing clouds and rolling wind
Might have been in the mind

As the blotchy grey sky lumbers on



[10 March 09]

10 March 2009

108 Poems #059

Six green and yellow slices
Fall from the avocado half

Softly glistening and smooth



[09 March 09]

09 March 2009

Evening Chanting

Through the cracks
And gaping wounds
Of a broken heart

Gratitude and joy
Flow openly


[08 March 09]

Homesick

Welling sadness
Incredible sadness

Skirting along the edge

Of tears and loneliness


Somehow the joy and delight

Conjured up by your words

And the vision

Of walking barefoot and

Climbing trees with gratitude


Touches something dark and unknown

An overwhelming grief

I have yet to make friends with

Or even ask it's name


Where am I?



[08 March 09]

Exercising

Above, the vast deep blue bowl of sky
To the East, the bright rising moon

To the West, the sparkling evening star

Below, the damp and shadowy ground


And through the middle,

The harsh wind whistles and howls


As I exercise these limbs
And let the mind rest a while



[08 March 09]

108 Poems #058

Moonlight slides across the floor
Climbs upon the sofa
Gets swallowed by the clouds


[08 March 09]

07 March 2009

108 Poems #057

This head aches a little
But the hedge has lost its head!

Brutally prepared for Spring.



[07 March 09]

For Katagiri Roshi

I hear your service
Deep bows

Incense

And a tear



[06 March 09]


In response to Wild Fox Zen's Memorial Service for Katagiri Roshi whom I know through the writing of
Natalie Goldberg

06 March 2009

108 Poems #056

The crisp frosty morning emerges
In the bright sharp sunshine

Blurred weariness slowly melts away



[06 March 09]

108 Poems #055

Turning and turning
Circling and circling

Yesterday's thoughts shade the morning mind



[05 March 09]

05 March 2009

108 Poems #054














Patterns repeat

Into the night

Until rest comes



[04 March 09]

04 March 2009

Perfection

Sitting still awareness brightens
Accepting the perfection

Of things just as they are


And just as they are not


Discomfort and turmoil

Comes to a rest

Under a bright crescent moon



[02 March 09]

03 March 2009

108 Poems #053

Sitting still
Through aches and pains

The morning lightens



[03 March 09]

Adjusting

Chasing this
Chasing that

Hoping, fearing

Waking, sleeping

Seeing, hearing

Cooking, cleaning

Working, resting

Eating, shitting


A mind full of

Distractions

Entanglements

Obstructions


Days full of activity

So busy going

Nowhere


Adjusting


A little to the left

A little to the right

Ah...!
The middle way

The vessel

Of daily practice

Sails onwards

Slowly, steadily, gently*


Leaving opposites

Bobbing in its wake



[20 January 09]


*Deep bow to Jisu Sunim

02 March 2009

108 Poems #052

Against the blue sky
Circling pigeons, beating wings

Shadows race across the frost



[02 March 09]

01 March 2009

108 Poems #051

Birds flit and skim across the garden
In the peaceful stillness

Time slips by



[01 March 09]

28 February 2009

108 Poems #050

Robin in the garden
Splash of red

In the grey brown green



[28 February 09]

27 February 2009

108 Poems #049

Budding tendrils reach beyond the leaves
Up towards the circling birds

Free in the vast and spacious sky



[27 February 09]

108 Poems #048

Furrows of rich red soil
Seen through the gaps in the trees
By this morning's new eyes

[26 February 09]

26 February 2009

108 Poems #047

A young couple kiss
In the street light glare

Bicycles strewn on the ground



[25 February 09]

25 February 2009

108 Poems #046

Not one leaf stirs
In the calm stillness

Of a morning at ease



[24 February 09]

23 February 2009

108 Poems #045














Grey blue morning

Nothing special

A cool and gentle breeze



[23 February 09]

Reaching beauty

Great fingers of solid cloud
Reach out across the sky

Interlaced with
Cotton wool
And sunshine



[22 February 09]

108 Poems #044

Red and gold motorway lights
The great dragon of the night
Streaming and writhing southward


[22 February 2009]

22 February 2009

Fragile

Incredible loneliness
Passing through life
In the company of others
And in the company of none

In the bright town centre
Pretty fragile creatures
Distract and tear at the heart

Questions of choices
Both made and kept
For freedom or fear?
Seemed so sure at the time

In the dark country lane
Shining stars beckon
Bringing the heart home


[21 February 09]

108 Poems #043

A little snow on distant hills
In my garden
Sunshine and snowdrops!


[21 February 09]

21 February 2009

108 Poems #042

Black feathers
Perfect stillness

In the midst of great speed



[20 February 09]

20 February 2009

108 Poems #041

Lambs bleating
Rain drumming

The fridge hums along



[19 February 09]

19 February 2009

Marks

In the darkness, and in the quiet
Almost too tired to lift the pen

I go through the motions


to see what


marks


are left


on

the

paper



[18 February 09]

18 February 2009

108 Poems #040

Tired and barely awake
Anxieties and worries

Disintegrate and flow on



[18 February 09]

17 February 2009

108 Poems #039

A cloud of black shapes
Rise and scatter across the sky

Beating, flapping, wheeling, gliding, croaking



[17 February 09]

Mountains Swim

The waters rise
For some

Aspirations rise

For some

Sorrows rise

For some

Opportunities rise

For some

Hardships rise


The mountains swim

The waters don't stop



[15 February 09]


In response to watching Up the Yangtze.

108 Poems #038

As the evening darkens
Letting go of fear and anger

The mind lightens



[16 February 09]

16 February 2009

Ashes

The Heart of the Perfection
Of Great Wisdom

Reaches across

Time

Continents

Languages

A life complete


Ashes in the ground

A death complete


Great vows, a great legacy

Yet while ashes are buried

The heart sorrows



[15 February 09]

108 Poems #037

Today. So much effort
But really, nothing special

Just this. Now.



[15 February 09]

15 February 2009

Passing

So many falling leaves
Even as Spring arrives


The life and death of humans

Follow their own cycles

And metacycles

Seemingly not bound

To the circumambulation

Of the earth around the sun


In the night sky

Shooting stars one after

Another


In the morning
No trace of snow nor
Footprints



[15 February 09]

108 Poems #036














A grey blanket of cloud

In the sky and in my mind

And yet life and beauty still emerge



[14 February 09]

13 February 2009

108 Poems #035

Enjoyable at the time
Last night's dinner
Haunts me this morning


[13 February 09]

Night Glow

a golden moon
climbs in the east

through layers of cloud

above the city lights

towards the stars

in the blackness

of the night sky above



[12 February 09]

12 February 2009

108 Poems #034

Anxieties, stress and worry
Boiling up, burning through

Leaving calm open spaciousness



[12 February 09]

11 February 2009

108 Poems #033

Mysterious
Strands of cloud decorate

The luminous golden moon



[11 February 09]

10 February 2009

108 Poems #032

Full moon and a female blackbird
Vanish without a trace

As the sun rises



[10 February 09]

09 February 2009

108 Poems #031

No inspiration, no thought
The landscape seems bleak

The day's tasks pressing



[09 February 09]

08 February 2009

108 Poems #030

Holding onto anxieties
Kindles flames of anger
Wanting to protect, the unprotectable


[08 February 09]

Walking home

This morning's footprints
Black icy puddles in the white snow
Walking home over the hills
In the cold moonlit night


[06 February 09]

108 Poems #029

Incense infused silence
Warm pools of candlelight

At one with the night



[07 February 09]

06 February 2009

108 Poems #028

Softly, softly, softly
Every flake counts

A deep blanket of white



[06 February 09]

A bowl

In the morning
A bowl of oats


In the evening

A bowl of rice


Fruit and seeds

With the oats

Vegetables and bean curd

With the rice


Such is the simplicity

I strive for in life



[01 September 08]

108 Poems #027














Without beginning, without ending

A Mi Tuo Fo, A Mi Tuo Fo*

Time flows, ever so gently, tenderly



[05 February 09]


*阿彌陀佛

05 February 2009

108 Poems #026

Footprints in the snow
Lead to the other shore

Gentle warmth, kindness and humour



[04 February 09]

03 February 2009

108 Poems #025

Sunshine sets alight
The snowy landscape
Grey clouds loom


[03 February 09]

Thinking of home

Cold dark morning, snow on the ground
For a brief moment, I wonder

How much of my life is about

Running away from the inevitable

Death of all those that I love?



[02 February 09]

02 February 2009

108 Poems #024

Impenetrable blanket of cloud
Grey, white
Snow on the ground


[02 February 09]

No effort

Sitting

The moon

High in the west

Makes no comment

Makes no effort

Clouds pass by


Just sitting

Luminous



[13 January 09]

108 Poems #023

Partial moon
Glimpsed through the clouds
Later the evening star


[01 February 09]

31 January 2009

108 Poems #022

Loneliness greets me in the morning
Gentle and attentive

I let it be and breathe



[31 January 09]

30 January 2009

108 Poems #021

A wet grey morning
Yet its beauty gently sings

I gaze awhile in gratitude



[30 January 09]

108 Poems #020

Conversations go round and around
Inside my head

Traffic roars by outside



[29 January 09]

29 January 2009

Driving to work

Coming over a crest
Below Aconbury Hill

In the grey damp morning

A stream of golden sunshine

Illuminates Dinedor Hill



[26 January 09]

28 January 2009

108 Poems #019

A passing pheasant
Leaves no trace in the air
Despite its frantic wing beats


[28 January 09]

27 January 2009

108 Poems #018














Without stopping or starting

Night gradually becomes day

Darkness becomes light



[27 January 09]


26 January 2009

108 Poems #017

Garden and fields in green and brown
Under a mild grey sky
Soft colours of the morning


[26 January 09]

25 January 2009

108 Poems #016

From the darkness
A surprising anger reacts

To every small disturbance



[25 January 09]

Mist

The white and frosty landscape
drifts gently away into the thick mist


[14 January 09]

Need

sometimes there's no need
to do anything


simply sit

simply smile

simple be


here



[15 January 09]

Ice

Standing in the conservatory
In the dark
morning
Car headlights i
lluminate
Patterns of ice
in the glass


[28 November 08]

Practising Being

Nothing more joyful
than practising being

at the end of a day

complete



[16 November 08]

Witnessed

Finishing work in the dark
Driving home

Witnessed by the rising moon

Sleeping under the pale white glow


Rising to the luminous radiance

Practising awakening

Witnessed by the suspended moon

No need for anyone to point



[16 October 08]

24 January 2009

Being at home

Sit down
Sit still

In the calm of being

Listen to the hum and echo

Of reverberating

Silence


And let everything go

Drop

No need to hold a single thing

A single thought


Boundaries blur and flow

These hands and these legs

This chair and this desk

The tiles on the floor


All here

Together

A silent orchestra

Perfectly so



[23 January 09]

108 Poems #015

On the pile of bricks
Just outside the window

A sparrow hops, hops, into the hedge



[24 January 09]

23 January 2009

108 Poems #014

Simple birdsong
A voice of beauty

Speaks to my tears



[23 January 09]

108 Poems #013

Seeing angry accusations and judgements
As ornaments to clear guidance and direction

I walk the path of gratitude and humility



[22 January 09]

22 January 2009

Hurt


I unclench my fist

Feel cool air on my palm

And space between my fingers

What if I unclench my heart?



[21 January 09]

108 Poems #012

Angry thoughts and hurt feelings
dropped in sudden awareness

of just this



[21 January 09]

21 January 2009

Touched

The moon
At midnight

Illuminates the landscape

Brightening my heart



[11 November 08]

Nothing to Attain

Each movement

Intention is precisely action

Action is precisely intention


A slow walk

Wholeness of being

Gratitude



[11 November 08]

20 January 2009

108 Poems #011

Are three lines enough?
Or actually too many?

Silence



[20 January 09]

Tracing

Tracing the origin
Of a patch of light

On the landing wall


Craning my neck

I discover the moon


Brightly tucked up

Into the top corner

Of the upstairs window



[11 October 08]

19 January 2009

108 Poems #010

After the rain and the thoughts
Clear and joyous birdsong
In the still dark morning


[19 January 09]

108 Poems #009














Thoughts fall away
Revealing a heart of gratitude
And a space of joy


[18 January 09]

17 January 2009

108 Poems #008

Starting the day slowly
Darkness, wind, rain

Give way to sunshine and blue sky



[17 January 09]

16 January 2009

108 Poems #007

Conversations, thoughts, ideas
Peeled away one by one

What is at the core?



[16 January 09]

108 Poems #006

Wondering if it's cold outside
I take the compost to the garden
Warm slippers await my return

[15 January 09]

15 January 2009

Non-sleeping

joyful insomnia
the kind of complete

happiness

of knowing where

i am

right now



[07 November 08]

Unfolding

The world turns
And the sun appears to rise

The sky lightens and day breaks


Morning practice flows

And clarity appears to arise

The mind opens and joy shines through



[29 October 08]

Human

truly there is no knowing
the unimaginable depths


of joy

of gratitude


this precious human life can bring



[28 October 08]

108 Poems #005

Tumbling thoughts
Released one by one

With open palms



[14 January 09]

13 January 2009

108 Poems #004

Palms together
I pass the moon

High in the west window



[13 January 09]

12 January 2009

108 Poems #003

Rain in the early morning
Warmer than the frost

Birdsong as the darkness lingers on



[12 January 09]

11 January 2009

108 Poems #002

This morning as I sit
A little Buddha comes
To join me in the stillness


[11 January 09]

108 Poems #001

Starting where I am
Where else is there?
Coming home a deep joy


[10 January 09]

04 January 2009

Perching

frosty morning
streaming sunshine

sparkling ground

a robin in the bare tree

just sitting


[03 January 09]

Don't make hasty decisions

Dark chocolate
on an empty stomach

suddenly the bathroom calls


Or was it?

Who can know

the root cause of something?


Afterwards

I brush my teeth



[03 January 08]