Flashlight batteries

Falling

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 9 Comments

The falling rain washing clean the road,

pooling for the birds,

freeing the leaves.

These many drops,

falling like the sky wants to share,

a blessing for so many.

Looking at my upturned face,

you wonder why I yearn for dark clouds to let loose.

Pouring forth all they have been holding.

The sky’s release streams down my head, my cheeks.

A trickle drips from my nose tip.

The storm and I let this wind blow through.

The raindrops hiding,

what you will never know,

are tears on my face.

 

© Ali Grimshaw

 

 

The Answer

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 6 Comments

Now is not the time for tomorrow’s thinking.

Living for when I get there and happiness lands.

Someday solutions for formulaic bliss.

A machine of future making.

Now, is life.

Remove the heavy hat of suffering.

Hang up the wool coat that has been passed down to you.

Slip off the leaden shoes denying your right to skip.

Let your toes feel the mud between them.

Hear the sounds in this space.

Just be,

be your own answer.

© Ali Grimshaw

Looking Ahead

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 4 Comments

By knowing you,

I find myself.

Now and 90 years wrinkled.

My doubts don’t exist in your eyes.

You see the chipped edges and

places worn raw from not retreating.

The rough, abeyant curves of my puzzle.

You see my essence of spirit.

gently holding it all up,

like a mirror before me,

so that I can see,

for myself,

who I am becoming.

© Ali Grimshaw 2016

 

While You Were Away

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 4 Comments

While you were away,

my heart expanded,

exploring new pathways,

journeying inside and out.

My life has grown

and yet I have not lost you.

We are still holding the

same thread,

forever woven,

into both of our hearts.

You never left.

while you were away.

© Ali Grimshaw

Dedicated to my dear friend Kirsten Schwabel and with gratitude to Neha’s blog Forgottenmeadows.

 

Within Each of US

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 4 Comments

Standing among violent shouting,

Angry vibrations pounding near.

Shuddering as the volume increases.

A roar of hate that can consume.

 

Inward I listen.

As the noise recedes,

I follow my breath

to a humming heart.

 

Steady in its love.

It walks where I walk.

It sleeps where I sleep.

 

Noise of the world cannot drown its pulse,

this calming cadence.

Internal rhythm.

 

Strength drawn from all that lives

lies inside me

and all beings.

 

Waiting to be heard.

 

© Ali Grimshaw

 

 

Between The Lines

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ Leave a comment

line straight as the horizon

faintly blue as sky meets sea

each edged finger-width apart

my words lay cushioned by these layers

some smeared by my own hand

it was not by accident that I wrote to you

between the lines and not on them.

© Ali Grimshaw

 

 

Bursting to Life

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 3 Comments

IMG_0989

After what seems like forever darkness

the light comes back again

each bud seeking warmth

layers begin to open

not because they were told, “It is time.”

facing the sun… their hearts knew.

© Alicia Grimshaw 2016

 

 

 

 

Your Flame

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 5 Comments

Huddled with survival,

dying coals radiate little warmth.

walk toward that which lights your fire.

fuel the love light inside yourself.

When the wind blows and blows fiercely.

Your glowing flame will remain.

Untouchable.

© Ali Grimshaw

 

Flashlight batteries

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 17 Comments

 

Darkness will arrive.  It always catches by surprise.  The last thing you thought would happen. Standing now between walls unseen. You can only feel your way. Bearings gone. Hearing your breath, wondering how long it has been since you just stood still. A moment of relief before the thinking returns. Holding the flashlight tight, you hope it will light your way. When was the last time the batteries were checked? One of the hundreds of tasks put into the someday pile.

© Ali Grimshaw 2015