hope

Poems from the Circle – Lighthouse Keeping

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 16 Comments

I spent some time with Ali Grimshaw’s writing circle and once again, enjoyed being with like minded souls as we explored poetry together. The inspiration for my poem came from, “Lighthouse Keeping” by Kay Ryan. – Val

Lighthouse Keeping By Val Boyko
Find Your Middle Ground

Know that we are
keepers of the light

Holding space and
reaching out to those
in darkened places.

Its not our job
to judge, advise, fix
or rescue others.

Our calling is to keep
the light shining
within ourselves and

bring it to the world,
to keep us all afloat.

Thank you Val for sharing this inspirational poem and for all the loving support written on your blog, Find Your Middle Ground. You are a bright light in the world. Keep on shining. I will be reading in appreciation.

Photo by Ave Calvar Martinez

Weather Forecast – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 36 Comments
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Light does not fall on us equally.
There are hours of gentle illumination, while some remain in shadow.
Random flashes which leave you for no reason at the front of the line.
Or the end, randomly burned, scorched,
with head shaking disbelief. Tranquil dusk light on leaves.
Other days blinded into paralysis, unable to see a way forward.

I remain in a thundercloud waiting room, counting shadows like minutes.
Weatherizing my soul before the next hurricane.
Steadfast, determined in my stance, for a return of the glow
In stillness it will find me.
Sun’s warm hand on my back again.
This too shall pass

Ali Grimshaw 2017

Weather Forecast was first published on Vita Brevis 
Vita Brevis Press is a bestselling small publisher dedicated
to emerging and established poets, circulating their work 
in an online magazine and in physical anthologies.

Let’s Carry the Load

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 39 Comments 
In the fog of conflict blinded numbness
we look to the leaders to steer,
peel back disagreement from the windshield.

We wait with held breath for a directive to follow
while voices clash, a radio screech between stations
unwilling to tune in to clarity.

We hope for a brilliant leader to put on a pedestal
of responsibility, like the GPS we depend on to find our way
the one who will hold the key to making it all go away.

Let's reach into our own pockets.

What if the driver we seek is us?

Not singular
but each, all
together.

The many 
unified. 

© Ali Grimshaw 2020

Let’s give thanks for poll workers, 
Stacey Abrams, fact-checkers — 
and the weather Thank you to every 
single person who helped to provide 
others with the opportunity to vote in 
our recent election. Together we can, 
yes we can, keep democracy alive. 
Thank you Joe Biden.

dVerse Open Link Night 
- Join in the reading and sharing of poetry 
with a welcoming community.

My light is shining.

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 12 Comments

A big thank you to Susi Bocks for sharing my voice on, “The Short of It.” I invite you to visit her site, iwriteher.com, for a reading of my short poems including this one. Thank you to all the readers that keep poetry alive.

Photo by Andre Furtado on Pexels.com
Thunderstorm Conversations

Lean into the loud
hold curiosity’s hand
consider this thundering
consider it may not mean what you thought.

This crack clashing boom 
only an illusion of danger.

Maybe it isn’t a disastrous end
but a calling of resounding strength
a breaking through from your ancestors
reverberating out across the sky,

“We are with you.”

Ali Grimshaw 2020

If you’d like to be featured on The Short of It, click here for the submissions guidelines.

Nested – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 45 Comments
  • Salmon River, Oregon
Somedays we may
need to return to the nest
lined with words of hope,
blanketed by belief
in our ability to fly again.

Somedays we may
need to hold ourselves
leaning into curved sides
of this small structure
built by someone who loved us.

© Ali Grimshaw 2020
dVerse Poet's Pub - Quadrille #113: Blanket Us

topsy-turvy – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 16 Comments 
Which way out?
Down is upside down
up is not what it used to be

Which way to the familiar 
where the predictable
seemed to be real?

Which way to rise
above the untaught history
which left us blind?

Which way forward
to undo, redo, or never do
again what once we did?

What we weren't ready for
or maybe never are, 
let's help each other rise
let us begin again.

© Ali Grimshaw 2020

Writing together provides a mirror for us to process life in a safe place where we have all agreed to listen with compassion. Thank you to all of you who have written with me in the last few months. I am so very grateful to share this journey with you. I have added this new date and time to open up the invitation to others in different time zones. Let’s connect across the boarders. Stay safe my friends.

Register on Eventbrite

What has yet to Appear – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 48 Comments

We are balancing between the blocks of our days large and small. Squares filled with the demands of our days and squares now left open. Boxes where plans once sat in happy company with future anticipation. Now canceled without pattern. Just scattered openings in the grid. Emptiness at first look, then disbelief. As we walk farther down the street, grief standing next to disappointment. Finally we turn the corner and see a tiny new patio garden. Someone is intent on growing beauty from strong willed, concrete pots. The first sprouts are just reaching free.

Determined seeds rise

there is always a crack, wide

enough for thriving

Lisbon, Portugal

This Haibun Monday over at dVerse Poets Pub we have a visual prompt. It was an new adventure for me. Click here to join the challenge.

Quarantine Quadrille – poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 33 Comments

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As the virus
careens,
spinning down
our long road.

The dust has yet
to settle
from the wheels

Slow motion,
particles falling,
We sift sillily
through,
glittered remembering.

Was that last week?

As I am here,
reaching
you are there,
still
only through airwaves.

© Alicia Grimshaw 2020

dVerse Poets Pub – Quadrille Challenge – silly

Saplings

Quote ~ ~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 6 Comments

A beautiful poem of hope from MISTYROADS

Saplings

And so we grow,
In winds bent back
Against the storms
And lightning strikes.
Headlong,
Rise up,
Unfurl
In splendour
And well-lit grace
Of Swift footsteps
That forever change
And twist
In those brief sorrows
Of untrained reach
And growth in silent tears;
That dry in hope
And sunlight given.

Copyright ©RMC May 2020

Click here for more from  MistyRoads Blog

End of the Rope – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 21 Comments

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The rope winds gently around my waist,
twisted, smoothly strong by years of mistakes,
trying again, doubt and wondering how.

Thick with memories of others who
believed with the strength of solid ground.
Believed that all earthquakes eventually stop shaking.
Believed in soil’s ability to grow what we need next.

The end of this rope was handed to me long ago.
A generous lifeline offered for free
to keep me on the planet.

Now I look down at the rope in my calloused hands,
threads of the millions, an explosion of frayed ends,
their forgivings, endurance,
the woven learnings of my ancestors.

The rope loops back and around me,
over and over,
then off into the distance.

I don’t need to see the end now
to trust it is anchored deeply somehow.

© Ali Grimshaw 2020

Inspired by William Stafford’s poem “The Way It Is”

dVerse – Final Couplet Prompt

Photo taken in on my last trip, Château de Suscinio in France.