how we ended up together

the summer of 1988: Jeanne and Don

 

How We Ended Up Together
by Joyce Sutphen
He was good in an emergency, calm
in the middle of a storm. Accidents
didn’t surprise him; he was always
ready for whatever came along. You
could count on him; you could make
a deal and he would keep it, even if you
couldn’t. His deals were impossible;
his deals were meant to make you fail,
and failing you found yourself in some
sort of emergency, someplace you didn’t
want to be, and he was good at getting
you back to the ground, back to your feet.
I chose him for what he could not give me,
and he chose me because I would not ask
until I was desperate and only he could help.
 
Joyce Sutphen, “How We Ended Up Together” from Naming the Stars. Copyright © 2004 by Joyce Sutphen

Antidote (Poem Spell)

sheep art by catherine

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Antidote (Poem Spell)

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stone in my heart be dust, be dust.

annoying wind, be cranberry yarn.

midnight storm, bring the clear tides in.

leaping dogs, bring the salty shells.

peasant bread, dip in olive oil.

reeds gold and pink, blow in the light.

clenched fist, open and wait.

riot of sunlight, set in the night.

don’t know what to do, you’ve come to the real work.

don’t know where to go, you’ve come to the real journey.

bafflement, get employed.

impeded stream, sing.

4/11/2017

quicksilver

Definition #338 Buttocks

The storm
with its gray buttocks of sky squatted
over us for days.

from Sarah Freligh “What I’ve lost”

My Holy Spirit (2)

Owl symbolizes wisdom. Holy Spirit brings wisdom to help us examine our lives; shows us past denial and self deception. He conforms us to the image of God’s son.

Your wisdom-eyes pierce the darkness of the night;
Inner light speeds vision through the trees and haze.
Your gizzard guides you in the storm, the winds
Make way for victory-guardian’s flighted maze.

Inner light speeds vision through the trees and haze:
You hear our cries, our pleas for mercy, sight,
The holy view, You knew, in Christ Your Son.

Your gizzard guides you in the storm, the winds
A rally-call, a tumult-spin, a war to win:
Protector’s wide spread wings!

Make way for victory-guardian’s flighted maze:
A guiding bird, watchful gaze, prophet
Of holiness! sanctifier-spirit!