Snow covers the mountains
with ice down to the valley floor.
Rivers run fast but the banks are frozen,
icicles hang from the broken trees.
How deep will cold set into the soft earth?
How pliable will we be under winter’s cover?
The harsh words of troubled hearts
fall like freezing rain
yet in the dim winter light
something more is asked,
questions from the core of the earth
far beneath the ice and snow.
How will you warm us
children of Adam?
What fire can you light
with the spark of eternity?
We are old but we remember.
What gifts will you bring
to this dark solstice?
Don, Thanks for this. A good reminder that in the dark and cold times of life, when there is the physical experience of brittle stiffness, I can juxtapose my body’s experience with the light and warmth of my core purpose. This creates a much fuller experience.
Beautiful Solstice poem!
The “children of Adam” phrase really jolted me out of the Dream of the Poem, though, as that is not a phrase active in my culture. I took a moment to scramble around in the dim room in my brain called Christianity–ah, yes! There it is!
Then I returned to the final sweeping finale of the poem.
I know Portland had snow and two hours south, we didn’t, so that was an enjoyable little local bit of pleasure in the knowing.
Thank you for sharing this.
Ah, yes… a timely reminder that gratitude is ever a 2-way street!
Thanks as always Don. Looking forward to the return of the light!
I love this poem, Don. Thank you for the gift you are. The harsh words of troubled hearts fall like rain. Good to be warm-blooded sons and daughters of Adam.
Powerful questions, Don. My answers are tiny seeds right now, but I hope with stewardship they may grow in the coming year.
So relevant to these times, Don. And a powerful reminder of our responsibility to express Light in the face of darkness .
Thanks for this beautiful poem Don! It is amazing how forgiving this earth is.
Thanks Don,
Good friends, good food, nature’s silence and warm fires get me through the winter.
Beautiful photo. Yes, ‘what gifts can we bring’ to the earth? The earth remembers so much of the “taking”.. where is the “bringing”? The gifts of the Magi… perhaps first, a smudging with frankincense and myrrh… lighting a candle… reminder to the humans that the light will soon come back … This is a powerful time… this solstice, can we but remember the important things. Thank you for your creative thoughts, Don.
Don…I am reminded of Charles Eisenstein’s new article on Standing Rock….Google it…it speaks in prose of your poem….
In the beginning of this life cycle, I asked Adam to light my fire! I remain passionate to walk my life passionately, right through to ascension. My earth is glad for it. I keep my Light focused on the path…along the river.
This is the Buddha Way.
With the spark of eternity, I thank you for this important question.
Made me think of our friend the storyteller Mr Hornyak…. and his special gift to light the fire of imagination…Your poems do the same in a very heart centered way.