Author: Ali Grimshaw

Jumping into August – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 37 Comments 
Dipping skinny-style, screaming out in glee, we entered the river to revive. Jumping away from the heated August afternoon only to return to the warm rocks and bask like turtles. Then followed hours of our rinse and repeat cycle as sunlight slid down the river. Summer freedom was its own kind of happy. Without the constraints of parents or the weight of planning for the future to come. We flew through the air trusting the pools to welcome us with a generosity that had held so many before our time. There were no thoughts of tomorrow.

bubbled free
water nymphs laze
summertide

©Ali Grimshaw 2021

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against the flow again – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 42 Comments

Swimming upstream
feeling the pull
of this current
day of decisions
to be made.

Kicking away
troubled tributaries

“You will regret this.” They say.

Where is my ladder through?
(even fish get one of those)

I guess God must think
me an excellent swimmer.

©Ali Grimshaw 2021

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Lacework – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 41 Comments 
Your error is forgetting
that you also began
as a seed.

The starfish that loses an arm
still thrives brightly seaward.

The coyote howls, then listens through
darkness to return to his pack.

The angel oak's reach is far and long
regardless of scarred branches.

Can you see the lacework 
between the living?

Each reaching out
tied in small knots
is also a receiving.

© Ali Grimshaw 2021

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Sky View – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 22 Comments 










If we reject who we are
bent feathers
flawed and perfect as a sparrow

we will lose the chance to know
what it means to fly with love

to know its power of lift
to feel it under our wings
to rest on its currents 

letting us soar without effort
until we are restored 
ready for the next journey skyward

when we have lost our belief in flight
we don't need to learn how to fly
just remember 

we were born knowing how

©Ali Grimshaw 2021


I was inspired to write this morning after listening to Mary Oliver read her poem. Click on this link to listen to her. 
 - Mary Oliver: I Happened to be Standing

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Photo of the Columbia River Gorge, Oregon 2021.





			

	


				
					


				
					


	

			
Not just another day – Poem by Ali Grimshaw
		

				

						 ~ Ali Grimshaw			 ~ 4 Comments					

				

		






via Crocus blossom — Vova Zinger’s Photoblog





each day a reaching 
of outward iridescence
threaded violet choices

©Ali Grimshaw 2021

Thank you to Vova Zinger for granting permission to share this inspiring photo as an accompaniment to my poem. I have followed Voya's photography blog for quite a while. His images are fantastic. 

I love writing with people from around the world. Come share your voice within the writing circle. You may be surprised how the words can flow forth with ease. All voices welcome.

Self-Compassion Through Poetry: Writing Circle
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How I Knew – Poem by Ali Grimshaw
		

				

						 ~ Ali Grimshaw			 ~ 37 Comments					

				

		






This tastes like the memory
of that simmering summer day.

I held a buttercup flower
under your chin, declaring
with the yellow glow of your skin,

"You like butter."

When you said, "Let me try,"

I knew we would be friends.

You were another
who wanted to see 
the colors for herself.

©Ali Grimshaw 2021

For Eugenia's prompt - Happiness

Give yourself space to let go 
Give yourself time to listen inward
Give yourself freedom to be

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Friday, July 9, 9:30 – 11:00 am PDT. Register here

			

	


				
					


				
					


	

			
For Shelby – Poem by Ali Grimshaw
		

				

						 ~ Ali Grimshaw			 ~ 38 Comments					

				

		






"All you have to do is write one true sentence.
Write the truest sentence that you know."
― Ernest Hemingway

round and wound snugly tight
we wrapped you 
with pockets of air 
to let the cold hurt breathe
before exhaling it with the laughter 

each small stitch a holding
of our unraveled hearts 
circled colors hitched secure
with homemade memory patterns 
our shared stories under stars

love appliqued for the winter months
loops small and strong to hold your weight in the wind
to keep your dreams collectively connected
securely anointed with our goodbye tears
tucked in tight for all nights

you will never be left
outside this handwoven
circle of arms

in each departing hand
a yarn of length kept warm
to remember you
in tomorrow's pocket

©Ali Grimshaw 2021

Dedicated to Shelby Case, reporter, writer and friend.

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Photo take in Bellingham, WA.

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Topography – Poem by Ali Grimshaw
		

				

						 ~ Ali Grimshaw			 ~ 48 Comments					

				

		






Thinly sliced sections of her heart

carefully laid bare

an inner dissection

to find the magnificence of awe

that is her heartwisdom.


Following faded peak moments 

mindfully mapped on her skin. 

Elevations reached, views of reckoning

and contours fallen from while yearning

led to an evolution of her topography.


She continues to traverse past valleys

while climbing toward her next becoming 

still a proposed expedition.


© Alicia Grimshaw Rewrite from 2019

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