Day 22 ~ What the Sufi Said

It is worse to be wounded by words than a sword
If the sword be not driven too deep.
But words you will keep, tormenting your heart.
The more so if they be true.

The truth and the lies dwell on the same tongue
but the mouth kept closed will gather no flies.
The heart of a fool is in his mouth;
the mouth of a wise man is in his heart.

In every false step there is something good
A lesson is there to be earned,
For he who wants honey must bear the bees stings
Accepting with grace, remembering what he has learned.

Nobody has ever lived in the way he would wish.
Many are the roads that don’t lead to the heart.
To live a good life you must love what you find,
Good works are the best place to start.

Portmeirion

My mother said,
“Bow three times, low,
if you see the new moon
through glass.
And be sure to turn
your purse over.”

We rarely went on holiday.
We had no money.

Not far from the sea ,
an Italianate village
overhangs a Welsh river,
with statues
preserved from the past,
stone mermaids,
washed ashore.

We stroll in a dream,
eating ice-cream.

Sunshine comes and goes,
overcast by scurrying clouds.
We hope the weather will hold.

On the pavement I found
a pebble,
a ring
and a discarded wrapper
that caught the sun.
It twinkled.

Scrawled on a scrap of paper,
”The end of the world is nigh,
don’t look now but we’re watching’’

There were roses and apples
piled in a basket.
I wondered who left then there.
The bell rings in the tower.

We went back to a cheap hotel.
It was over.

My lover is away.
My lover is often away
but it makes no distance.

I dreamed of my father last night,
we wandered room to room
as he shared his wisdom.

“How can we believe what they tell us now
when we know they have lied before.
Its all manipulation,
since 1984 and before.
Think about Aldous Huxley.
He knew.
That man had vision.”

When I was a child I dreamed of flying,
flying above the blue curve of a bay,
probably flying homeward.

Outside my window
is a wall, overgrown,
with moss and ivy.
Goodnight room,
goodnight window,
goodnight moon.
Hello Cupid and Psyche.

Renewing Alice

 

An ageing Alice sits in her room
Leading a simple life.
Her big adventures are done.

An ageing Alice sits in her room,
Her once pretty face losing its’ bloom.
This is the nature of time.

An ageing Alice sits in her room
Remembering, quietly smiling,
Making a note in her diary ~~~

”The Mad Hatter sees to the deeply crazed core,
The central heart of the matter.
When he dropped in today, escaping the rain,
I was thrilled and delighted to see him again

When you look at the world in a different way
There is wonder, adventure, in each new born day.
Mad, a bit sad, never bad,
He’s the dearest friend I ever had.

Next time it rains I hope he comes back.
He reminds me so much of something I lack.
It’s always good to have a long natter.
There is wisdom aplenty in tea time chatter.”

The Soul is King

As large as the universe,

as small as our individual hearts,

joined as one,

manifest in many parts,

the blood of every woman and man

rises in the trees sap

and on the birds wing,

held in the throne of water and air

we live and die,

the flames of a fire.

The Soul is King.

 

We in our tiny lives,

brush against each other in passing.

I know my brothers and sisters

by their smiles,

by the light that shines in their eyes

and their glances,

by the stories they pause to tell when we meet.

 

There is an older wisdom

that stir in our dreams,

unnameable,

unbreakable,

that which binds us,

passed as a torch,

hand to hand,

written in stars

and the shape of the land,

the land where the Soul is King.

 

Words

‘Sticks and stones may break my bones

but words will never hurt me.’

Ha! who arrived at that

pat down potted wisdom

shrugging off truth

with an easy phrase and a lie

 

Words are life savers and killers,

blessing givers, tormentors, thieves

they can make you grovel

they can make you free

they can make you feel loved,

wanted and cared for, or

disgraced, misplaced, dispossessed

 

words are power

words are spells

one misplaced word

side-tracks, sharp edges, confusions

all is lost and undone

 

don’t ask me to speak with words

let me show you, not tell you

give me the language of eyes and skin

my hand in your hair, the quiet night air,

the bird song, the breeze, the river

my arm under your head,

your breathe in my ear,

tangled limbs,

these are the words of love