October has passed. That bomb cyclonedidn’t get us. A month of forgivenesshas passed. I forgave myself and others. Now here is November’s Balanced State,
calm and cool. Our mini meadow greens
from rain in recent weeks.After many drought months—a sweet revival.
November, 2021(c) Gudrun Mouw
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Oct. 13, 2021(c) Gudrun Mouw
I had a moment when presence spoke up.
I was weaving back and forth, up and down
through the oak forest, suddenly, Ms. Presence
appeared: from branches, dips, mounds, holes, dirt,
wild grasses, that child’s voice came forth,
“Here I am. Watch me!”
September 23, 2020
(c) Gudrun Mouw
The tree that sheltered us
during the long ago storm
that blew off the cottage roof,
that hundred some year old tree fell uphill
creating a weave of dry, tangled limbs.
This drought goes beyond the beyond.
I carry water until it hurts;
dishwater is not wasted,
but my tears are not enough.
Gudrun Mouw (c)
August 22, 2021
Walking meditation practice has been an important helpmate for a while now. It teaches me to be present with every step, to experience the movement of body, mind and breath. I learn about being attentive in the midst of sight and sound and uneven surfaces underfoot. Resting afterwards, I appreciate the wonderful gift of respite.
I have recently finished reading, The Way of Silence: The Prose and Poetry of Basho by Richard Lewis, a book given to me by one of my yoga students. Basho was a seventeen century Japanese haiku master.
What seems timely for me, at this time, is that he embarked on a solitary journey, gradually withdrawing from the world as personified in the final observation of this book: ….”it has been customary to leave behind a death poem….But every moment of life is the last….”
This reminds me of the yogic teachings that every breath is both a birth and a death—a beginning and an end. That is something to contemplate during this dangerous Covid pandemic era. I ask myself: Is it not crucial to value the present moment, however it appears and however difficult that might be?
March 14, 2021
Gudrun Mouw (c)
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