Deep gray clouds cover the sky like a heavy blanket Rain drums relentlessly on the shiny gray asphalt The world is a tapestry of gray Gray is beautiful
This is the glory of rainy days They leave the world to its quiet contemplation Its deep introspection Rain cleanses more than the greater world It penetrates into the soul And washes away the dust of living
Rain awakens a simple joy With renewal and rejuvenation The meditation of raindrops on glass Droplets colliding into each other Reflecting the world in a new perspective while Drawing meandering paths across glittering window panes
The first spring rain falls from a darkened sky Washing away the heaviness from the air Bringing deliverance of spirit Offering itself as balm for my weary heart Through its steady patter beyond my open window Petrichor rising to ground me Cool and damp air greeting too hot skin I close my eyes Imagining my complete surrender to it Making an offering of all that scars me All that weighs so heavily on my shoulders I welcome this renewal This forgiveness This peace I invite this healing Surrender to this gentleness Allow this act of cleansing Readying my world to reawaken Readying me to bloom again
I'm not a morning person But I love the Maxfield Parrish skies of dawn Pink and purple watercolor brush strokes Across a robin's egg blue sky Golden light gilding every cloud in radiant luminescence Pastel magic painted across the heavens Suspending breath through awe Arresting the rush and rattle of morning routines With the beauty of nature's majesty I will gladly pour a cup of coffee in the wee hours If I get to enjoy a front row seat for such an art show
This is my season The season Persephone returns to the underworld To take up her night-sky crown A season where darkness rules And pomegranate seeds glisten Like ruby drops of blood Across a dark and mossy earth A season where candlelight entwines with shadow And long nights lay steeped in vivid dreaming
In this season I embrace my own darkness Unafraid of the cold and the quiet For this is where magic lives Where the mythical and mystical thrive Weaving spells amongst the silence I remember my power just like Persephone For this is a season where the resolute thrive
I submerge into my own deep waters My dark reflection staring back at me As I descend into my true self Into the rejuvenation that exists At the heart of midnight I greet each version of myself Forgiving myself for every unkindness Every neglectful moment In this stillness where I am Safe and whole inside my power For this is the season I return to self Where I remember who I am A daughter of darkness and fire
Gold, yellow, red A carpet of leaves It crunched beneath their feet As they played in the light of the golden afternoon Cheeks rosey and hair wild Autumn had come
The rock stood stalwart over the sea
Strong
Silent
Resolute
Ever watching
Ever present
The sea praised the rock
Recognizing its reliability
Extolling its resilience
Of the rock's ability to weather the elements
Alongside the sea
But the rock wasn't resilient
The rock suffered
The rain mellowed the rock
Smoothing down its defined edges
At first the rock did not mind
Because aren't smoothed edges
A testament to its steadfast partnership with the sea
Showing proof of its loyalty
But water was also an insidious lover
The mist with the help of the wind found every crack
And forced its way deep within the stone
Expanding fissures and causing fractures
The rock without realizing lost itself to time
The relentlessness of water
Slowly broke down the rock
Until it one day crumbled into the sea
It was not mourned or missed
Its absence sparked no shadow of memory
For the sea still lapped and lashed and sprayed and claimed
All who sat upon its shore
One drop of salted water at a time
-gws
"It's Spring!" the little songbird sang,
excitement trilling in her voice.
"It is winter," groaned the sleepy sapling
whose roots were enshrouded in icy soil.
"But the sun is SO warm," whistled the songbird.
"Yes, but the ground is still SO cold," creaked the sapling
"Puff up, my small friend, and sleep with me a little longer.
When my buds start to sprout, we will both sing a song of
welcome for Spring."
So the songbird tucked up into a nook in the saplings branches
and together they hunkered down to wait for Spring to truly arrive.
-gws
A little storm cloud wanted to be painted in the colors of dawn and so it stood in the sunlight, basking in joy.
-gws
(photo by me taken while waiting to grab my to-go coffee this morning.)
May your hearth glow bright and warm as the sun deities slumber.
May your threshold be welcoming and your table full.
May you dream deeply of abundance, joy, love, and laughter.
May the stillness of nature restore your ability to hear your heart song.
Rest well and know that, soon, the sun returns!
Blessed Solstice!
- gws