This musing is a little different for it contains a number of “poems” I wrote while on retreat. My hope is that this these poems will serve as a sort of invitation to bring some creativity to your journaling process and even encourage you to give poetry a go. I am certainly no poet, but I found much energy and joy in giving myself the freedom to try my hand at poetry while reminding myself that “anything worth doing is worth doing poorly,” to quote GK Chesterton. Also, I am convinced that the God of heaven looks at the ‘wonderful’ prose I wrote and announces to all who have ears to hear; “That’s my boy, isn’t he something – creative just like me!”

morning

I took a walk this morning

through a sea of glistening pearls

upon a lush carpet of green

to greet the sun

to welcome a new day

LOVE

God, I want to experience your love!

not know it

not rely on it

not live in light of it

I want to feel your love

not as a baby at it’s mother’s breast

but

as a woman with her lover

hold me

touch me

take me

ravish me

I stand before you

yielded

trembling

apprehensive

waiting

wanting

4th of July

the storm has passed

the thunder now silent

the lightening turned off

man takes center stage

the fuse is lit

the show begins

the fireworks explode in the night sky

robbed of all their glory

by the thunder that shook the earth

by the lightening that ignited the heavens

God, the great Pyrotechnician has spoken

the bee

a bee gently lands on a flower

gracefully bows and the dance begins

they twist

they twirl

they romp

they stomp

lost in one another

oblivious to all

God, I will be the bee

if you will be the flower

Then tomorrow we can switch

the hill

I plunge myself down a grassy hill

childlike

reckless

carefree

rolling

rolling

rolling

I come to a stop and lie there

the world spinning beneath me

covered head to toe with God

the dance

clumsy steps

on a dance floor of green grass

more not falling than dancing

momentarily freed from

self-criticism

expectations of others

the ‘dance’ continues

a joyful song of devotion,

gratitude,

thanksgiving,

erupts within

the ‘dance’ continues

lost in the moment

lost in the arms of God

Proverbs 8

wisdom invites

wisdom begs

wisdom cries out

wisdom pleads

wisdom shouts

I turn on the TV

wisdom weeps

shoes?

a self-indulgent romp

on a plush carpet of forest green moss -

Why wear shoes?

Now it is your turn. Give yourself the freedom to do poetry poorly, knowing that as you seek to embrace your God-given creativity, it brings a smile to the face of God. And who knows - you may turn out to be quite the poet but didn’t know it J