This is a reminder to me
And maybe you
That to be at peace
We must plant our feet
In the earth
Indulge in the dirt
To feel okay
Hearts must fray
Back to raw source
From whence they came
So quieten down
Get close to the ground
And listen to the noise
Of life all around
Reconnect
With the breath
Steady yourself
In music-less sound
I will henceforth reliquish the tyranny of rhyme! and simply tell you a few of the many things that I noticed in the park today:
The leaves that twirl as they fall
The suprising softness of the bed of crisp leaves and grass under my feet
Putting my face to the ground and hearing the leaves crackle and the sense of softness and the sound of my own breathing
Bird noises coming and going, but always present somewhere
Birds flying in flocks and solo. The swooping flapping beating wings sound.
The sun lighting up different parts of the earth and me, shadows encroaching in intricate webbed patterns
The dance the shadows play on the shaded leaves
The lighted trunks that are slashed through by shadows
The silly smiling leaping dogs with zero self consciousness about showing abounding love and affection for complete strangers!
The swirling everpresent chilled breeze ensuring a sense of constant subtle movement
and constant change in the environment.
The wind blows and the leaves above make a sound which is like a gentle washing machine in the sky, or like heavy breathing or the flush of rain when you are inside; The wind moving the canopy, a sound hard to describe
The sun’s unwavering, bursting brightness. The bunch beaming raws like strands of straw, long and short.
The luminescence of the various coloured leaves all around me
The colours themselves; harvest yellow, rust, burnished brown and burgundy
My things strewn about. All were carefully chosen. The colour scheme I now see, says something about me. These tools that Improve my life are not blemishes on the ‘natural landscape’. They are fine creations. Extensions of me. Grateful to have them.
Not wanting music
Wanting to trust myself
To be okay
Not constantly distracted or entertained
Hearing myself move through
the leaf strewn grass
As if i am hearing an animal moving about nearby
But it is me, I am the animal moving through this earth
And I remember again
Like I have so many times before
And forgotten
I am suppossed to do this
This is health
This is home
This is why I get agitated when I am indoors too much
Nothing’s wrong with me
Only that I constantly forget what should be my priority
To be outside
And just be
If I don’t return to this peace often enough, then I get caught up in the flurry of having a life.
I am happy to be moving forward as a person. New job and new town and new capabilities await me.
Have to remember to frequent the places that will put me in my place
So I don’t get too flustered or stressed by ambition
Birds flying
Wind swishing
Clouds forming and unforming
Moving like ships across the sky
Which is always there to remind you
This life is not all ugly, not all phony, not all mundane
The colours and extravagence that goes on there, the vastness and depth
Is always there remind you
You are meant to feel good
You are meant to be loved
Hannah Fitzpatrick 