My Light is Shining

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 7 Comments

I am honored to have my poem, Sidewalk Gallery, included in this anthology alongside many other poets that I adore. Thank you, Brian Geiger, for the opportunity to share my words.

From the publisher: “From a shaft of sunlight warming the kitchen floor to a lush forest by Walden pond, what is it about experiencing nature that pleases and fulfills us? In the third volume of the Vita Brevis Poetry Anthology, established and emerging poets from around the world show what nature means to them. This is nature poetry at its most precise and moving, continuing the long tradition of Transcendentalism, deciphering ourselves and the world that sustains us — with art.”

You can find Nothing Divine Dies here in paperback and ebook.

for them – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 19 Comments 
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. 
Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” 
- Martin Luther King Jr

I teach them.

I teach them about the magic eraser of fresh starts
far more valuable than double digit multiplication
or how to identify an adverb.

I teach them.

I teach them to listen for their own questions
ones that lift and spring forth aliveness.
The ones that come from within.

I teach them.

I teach them in the hot and cold times
heartbreak tsunami, within or without walls.
They are my living hope, my wonder.

I teach them 
and I receive
the beauty of their being.

© Ali Grimshaw 2022

Mural created by the 5th grade students of Mr. Bowen'class at Oak Creek Elementary.
I am honored to support the students and teachers of this amazing school. 
Stay strong.

Transitory – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 19 Comments 
I built a bridge to you
using marshmallows and glue
It was worth the sticky effort
then it melted in the rain.

I threw a magic ruby rope
woven with sparkles of hope
singing enchantments 
to call you closer.

I dug a river of blue
inviting a float on my skin
to pull you within
but you preferred to fly.

I nested a home for myself
cocooned through my pain.
With a change in the winds
on a zephyr you rode in.

© Ali Grimshaw 2022

dVerse Open LInk Night #307 - Join in HERE

Photo take at the fantastic Chihuly Garden last summer when I was still traveling.

It’s Time – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 21 Comments
© Ali Grimshaw 2021

Writing together is a beautiful method of letting go, highlighting what is worth holding on to, and listening inward. It is a playful journey and a great way to make friends from distant places. Join me for a writing circle as we start a new year.

Write Yourself: Reflection Through Poetry. 1/15/22, 10:30 AM PST – Click HERE

Wishing you peace and wellness in 2022.

Ali

No Plug-in Needed – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 35 Comments 
during darkest of seasons
I tinsel you with light
my face giving its full glow

your apple-cheeks of radiance
champions of joy for 
encounters with newcomers,

or friends. Christmas tree
or not. I will decorate you
with loveshine.

Not a bulb between us unlit.

© Ali Grimshaw 2021 

dVerse Poets Pub - Quadrille 
Join us to connect with poets around the world. HERE

Photo taken at a past Portland Winter Lights Festival.
It is perfect way to escape Winter darkness in Februrary.
For this year's fun click HERE.

Improvement- Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 34 Comments 
Do birds tweet tips to build the ultimate nest
the perfect moss, twigs and feathers, 
compare upgrades while glancing at neighboring trees?
Are their morning songs full of howtos
improvements for the hatching experience 
which worms provide ultimate first year growth? 
Do they evaluate whose chick flies first
beak prodding, edging young to the side of the nest?

Do whales train for the record breaking swim 
gossip about sleek oils to reduce resistance, 
or share tips for secret feeding grounds?
Do they nose their young to be better, faster, more
than the last generation in hope of survival?
Do they feel the temperature change 
of homeland waters and wonder?

What does it mean to live up to your full potential?
Who decides what that looks like while growing inside
a cage of culture we have been born into? More is 
better or not, faster? Further? More fragile?
What says the wisdom of each being? 

When have I last heard my beating heart?

© Ali Grimshaw 2021 

Join us at dVerse Open LInk Night - HERE

Poems from the Circle

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 11 Comments 
To Know You by Kelley Morris

Oh, that I would not
Miss the chance
To know you
Past your likes
Past your dislikes
The chance
To offer time
As a gift for us both-
After all, that is
The only way
We truly connect
Occupying
The same space
In the physical
In the technological
Either has the ability
To spark the same magic
Oh, that I would not
Miss the chance
To know you
Due to the foolishness
Of a word
Such as busy-
Is there really such a thing, anyway?

I am grateful for Kelley's permission to share her poem from a recent writing circle. You can find more of her poems here, pianogirlthoughts.com. Kelley lives in Oklahoma, I in Oregon. I never would have had the chance to know her if she hadn't joined a writing circle. It has been an amazing to write with her across the many miles, hear her experiences and find connection with someone who started out as a stranger and now is a friend.

I continue to meet big-hearted humans across different time zones. Writing together provides a mirror for us to process life in a place where we have all agreed to listen with compassion. Come join us for a writing circle. No experience needed. All voices are welcome.

Photo taken November 2021, Bozeman, Montana.

Fragments of Joy – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 12 Comments 
Awe is the wisdom of sweet
sticky handed laughter.
Let loose to tumble through
doorways of my day.

Eyes of wonderful, cherishing
new gleam on faces found.

Mystery of how 
this connects to that
which we would have never 
guessed was related.

Unexpected sparkles 
in the corner.

© Ali Grimshaw 2021

Meeting the Bar: Critique and Craft - Join us at dVerse HERE

Briefly – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 27 Comments
Fallen Leaf Art by Nikola Faller in Osijek, Croatia – More inspiring photos HERE
Briefly

Stages and ages of crimson edges
crisp rounds, centers of golden.

Veins will remain long after the delicate 
sections have disassembled themselves
to join the soil for another cycle. 

These elders don't fight seasonal changes.
Through the quiet and loud
or bend and wave of storm
they receive while sheltering seedings below

forever willing to show their nakeness 
in the darkest of times.
With empty arms
while full of life within.

Their offerings a mosaic
of temorary color.

© Ali Grimshaw 2021

Join us on dVerse Poet's Pub for Open Link Night - HERE

With Appreciation

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 15 Comments

I can’t imagine my life without poetry. How many times has a poem shifted my thinking, invited my tears of release, or shined a light on the awe of being alive? Each poem is an invitation to slow down. Without them what could I have missed? Therefore, I am grateful to others who promote poetry and for each poet brave enough to share.

Thank you to Susi Blocks for nominating one of my poems from The Short of It for The Pushcart Prize I am one of six to be nominated by her. My poem, Thunderstorm Conversations can be read on Susi’s blog, I Write Her. If you’d like to be featured on The Short of It, click here for the submissions guidelines.

Thank you to the poems, let’s keep making space for them to arrive.

Ali