Autumn prepares to make its bow
As December takes the stage
With evergreen and holly crown
And bonfires ablaze
The cloak of winter deep and white
With whispered grace arrives
While all good folks abide long nights
As snow falls on the pines
Let not the darkness weight your brow
Do light your lamps ablaze
For soon the Solstice will arrive
To return the longer days
-gws
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
-gws
I have entered my season of truth
The veil of delusion
Illusion
Deliberate ignorance
Is being peeled away
It is not an ugly truth
I find below the surface
But a blinding
Shining truth
One that offers a promise
Of deliverance from a
Self-imposed bondage
And offers a path
To a beautiful new freedom
-gws
If I was a tarot card The Knight of Swords it would be Even my name, Gladys Is reminiscent of the gladius blade The knight and I are of quick wit Sharp tongue And posses a low tolerance for stupidity We have something to say And you must listen now or miss it To your own detriment The truth is our shield Logic our blade We understand the time is now And no one and nothing will Stop our message Some may think us Too blunt Too cutting Too opinionated Too unfeeling But that is because they do not Understand the urgency Carpe Diem my friends The day is yours to lose The opportunity of now Will not return again -gws
What is
No longer serves me
I glance back over my shoulder
Setting this place and time
Into my memory to honor
The weight of this moment
This chapter has ended
Though I may be the only
One who knows it
I shoulder my bag
With deliberate movements
And a deep sigh
It’s time to find out
To discover
To move on and move forward
With a step
I let go of what was
And turn toward a path I know
Will be paved with the opportunity
For enlightenment and discovery
-gws
The long night arrives at dawn How long was I in the darkness My escape is almost complete The journey from my hardships Nearly done A better life awaits On the horizon -gws
When vibrant joy sparks bitter tears It means that too many years Have been spent in emotional blight That no jubilation can put to right Like a cloud crossing the sun Or a dissonant chord rung When my heart swells and glows My nervous system knows That this joy will lead to grieving My chest begins its heaving Turning smiles into frowns As the cortisol lets down How long has this been so I will not pretend to know Like a candle smothered I unconsciously keep covered That which makes me take up space Before I can feel the grace Of real joy in my blood I dump it in the mud I avoid the disappointment Like a fly stuck in the ointment I abandon my true will When he sets on me that chill And so I am now trained That joy will end in pain I know that I must mend So the sun can shine again -gws
The roulette wheel revolves
Luck is on my side
Fortune shines upon me
I can do no wrong
-gws
I throw open the window
And bathe in the light of the new day
Infinite possibilities await me
I dance to the bird song
I breathe in the fragrance of
Newly bloomed flowers
I am excited to greet the day
As the fresh start it is
The day’s adventure awaits
-gws
The sound reverberates in my ears
It vibrates across my skin
As the applause rolls out of the
Blackness beyond the spotlight
Time slows
As a radiant smile stretches
Across my beaming face
I bow once
Twice
I bring my hand to my breast
As I appreciate the accolades
For my dedicated performance
-gws
Words Wishes and Wisdom 