Tag Archives: poetry

Journey

River winding to
the sea, my soul searches for
answers in ripples.


It’s Your Journey

You are the captain of your destiny, but only if you choose to be. The matrix of society will try to shape your mind and your future, if you are not careful about the thoughts to which you subscribe.

Increasingly we are lead to believe in the societal matrix that we are helpless victims of fate, that someone else should create our reality, that we have no wisdom or personal power to shape it. We are taught that the problems are too big for us to fix, so let an external authority take care of it.

Start to be more self-observant and analyze the messages being delivered to your mind daily. Do they make you feel personally empowered? Do you feel and believe they are leading you down a road where you could feel truly fulfilled and happy in your life?

The life you are living is a result of your thoughts. If the thoughts that dominate your mind and the reality you see before your eyes no longer resonate with your true desires, figuratively (or literally) pack your bag and set out to create the life you want.

This is YOUR life journey, no one else’s, so make sure it’s a road of your choosing.


Inspirational Quotes:

“If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there”
~ George Harrison

“You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.”
~ Mae West

“May you live every day of your life.”
~ Jonathan Swift

“The most important thing is to enjoy your life—to be happy—it’s all that matters.”
~ Audrey Hepburn



The haiku Journey is from Soul Journey: The Poetry of Life.

It’s Your Journey is a repost from my archives, July 19, 2021.

Dare to Risk

Why have you chosen
a life that you say you hate?
You are chained by fear.

Risk opens new doors,
the guard at the prison gate
is really just you.

When your box gets small,
and you cannot breathe at all,
Alice says, “Stretch your mind”.

Click the Ruby Shoes!
You’ve always had the power
to claim your true Self.

Release from your past.
Imagine a new future.
Choose your happiness!



Risk to Grow

“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” Indeed! This is one of my favorite life quotes, most commonly attributed to Albert Einstein. Rest assured that nothing new is ever going to happen in the same old rut.

We humans have a tendency to stay within our familiar routines and patterns. After all, that’s the safe zone, right? However, that comfortable place can inevitably become a boring prison. When we feel antsy and our hearts are screaming to break down the walls, this is a signal that it’s time for change.

Our souls want to learn and grow. It’s a deep drive within each of us, but fear of change tends to hold us back. To become unstuck, we must have courage to let go of the old and try something new. Small risks and little adventures build our courage arsenal to take on bigger ones.

Before we know it, life feels richer, exciting, and more fulfilling. All it takes is just one baby step forward. See that glimmer on the horizon? Start heading over there.



Dare to Risk was first published in 2017 as part of an anthology called Seven Degrees of Wisdom: Welcome to Our Circle It features prose and poetry by 7 women authors on 7 life themes: Aging, Having a Voice, Wisdom, Courage, Love, Loss, and Risk.

Risk to Grow is included in my inspirations ebook Becoming Bigger: In a world that wants to keep you small.

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Birthing

How did humanity
arrive at this place?
Almost overnight,
viral war torn,
scarred, skeptical,
frazzled, frightened,
lonely isolation,
madly missing
the joy of life.

Humanity’s vitality
slowly but surely
leaking away,
drained by a
lurking thieving,
deceitful beast,
gluttonous gorger
swallowing whole
all who yield.

But the wheel of
fortune ever turns,
the black jar of
Pandora’s woes
morphs to womb
of fathomless
mother goddess
of a Golden Age,
a new humanity.

It’s time to birth
transformation
from destruction,
swimming upwards
to shimmering light,
gulping great drafts
of rarefied air,
reclaiming life and
eager to live it.



I wrote this poem in the middle of the pandemic, August 2021. One might say we have moved beyond this, so why post it? Because this event was part our spiritual awakening, and we are still sorting out all of the implications and effects it had on the collective we call humanity.


Birthing is an excerpt from Humanity’s Lament: Poetry for Our Times. It’s free.

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The Illusion of Civilized

Civilized is not
computers and skyscrapers,
it’s caring for Life.


As our buildings get taller and our computers faster, it seems that modern society is simultaneously sliding downward in terms of the fundamental life principles needed to build a truly great civilization. There are cultures we might label as “primitive” that have or had a much greater grasp of the ethics and integrity of a respectful and fulfilling society.

In the Star Trek series (there are several), there is a law of noninterference called “The Prime Directive”. It dictates that there be no interference with the natural development of any primitive society. In the Star Trek stories, the defining line is that another (alien) society must have achieved warp speed technology on their own before any contact can be made with them. These days I wonder what civilizations might be observing us and just shaking their heads. Observation of our incessant human wars could be one example.

“Sorry, we would really like to help you, we see you are floundering around and it is really painful to watch. But, you haven’t figured out certain basic things on your own yet… Give us a call when you get it.”

Inspirational Quotes:

As we stand on the brink of WW3, the first quote from Albert Einstein is particularly poignant:

“I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones.” ~ Albert Einstein

“Most people do not really want freedom, because freedom involves responsibility, and most people are frightened of responsibility.” ~ Sigmund Freud

“What difference does it make to the dead, the orphans and the homeless, whether the mad destruction is wrought under the name of totalitarianism or in the holy name of liberty or democracy?” ~ Mahatma Gandhi

“If everyone demanded peace instead of another television set, then there would be peace.” ~ John Lennon

“When the enemy has no face, society will invent one.” ~ Susan Faludi


The haiku Lunacy is an excerpt from Humanity’s Lament. It’s free here.

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Springtime Suite

How our souls yearn for spring, for the sweetness of it, the rebirth of green and the feeling that no matter how hard the winter was, we endured it. We are finally rewarded with the chance to start afresh…

Our dreams are renewed in spring; we feel like anything is possible. The vitality of life runs through our veins again, just as the sap flows in the trees.

My heart drifts back to sweet memories of spring, accompanying my dad to the sugar bush, snow still on the ground, but the sun promising the coming warmth of summer. And hauling a big tin of maple syrup home, feeling the abundance that the Earth had provided. Even as a kid I appreciated it, the sweetness of this simple annual ritual with my father.

Our backyard boasted both a cherry and an apple tree. One would flower pink, the other white. I loved walking way down to the end of the yard, simply to admire the beautiful blossoms and breathe in their intoxicating, delicate scent.

Much later in adulthood, I discovered travel stories of Japan, and now my soul yearns to visit a place where the cherry blossom is revered and celebrated. Some day I will, paying homage to girlhood memories, springtime, my father, and the beauty of life, which ideally we should celebrate every day.

But oh, how it feels easier to celebrate that beauty in springtime!

“In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer.” ~ Albert Camus


Trill

As birds can transcend the ground and fly towards the heavens, they have been revered in various cultures (particularly indigenous) as messengers between deity and man. What a lovely and comforting thought, that feathered spirits with wings of angels communicate with us here on Earth.

Modern research grounded in this physical world has apparently revealed the positive effects of bird song. Their music allows us to relax, refocus, and center ourselves in what is natural and real. For my part, I remember the way my spirit lifted with the arrival of springtime and the sound of the first robin’s call. My heart sang along with it.

Nature speaks a language that we understand when we calm our minds and enter a state of presence in the moment. Our hearts assimilate the messages, and our souls feel great joy in them.


Pulsing

Sweet zephyr riffles
elegant emerald fronds,
echoes river ripples.



Trill is an excerpt from Our Beautiful Earth. Pulsing is an excerpt from Hart Haiku Vol. 1 / Shop all ebooks / Find freebies here

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Springtime Suite © Susan L Hart 2024