mental health

Begin Again – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 7 Comments 
now, before the spark dims
and doubt blankets your 
mind with too comfortable

now, before familiar climbs onto your lap
with worries, warmly weighty
and resignation joins in to
pull courage from the room

now, before you forget 
the dreams of befriending
a green tree of sunlight
the touch of dragonfly landings.

© Ali Grimshaw 2020

In this world of ever changing circumstances taking time to slow down with a poem and a small group of thoughtful people is, like a cool glass of water on a hot day, refreshing. I look forward to the opportunity to write with you.

Writing together can:
• Surprise and delight us
• Allow expression of feelings in creative ways
• Guide our own journey

Click on the links below for more information and registration. 

Writing for Renewal: Poetry & Reflection Circle Monday, July 6 12:00 PM PDT

Writing to Restore Ourselves: Poetry & Reflection Circle Wednesday, July 8 4:30 pm PDT  

Writing to Restore Ourselves: Poetry & Reflection Circle Tuesday, July 14 9:30 AM PDT

Curious about weekly writing circles? Email me at  coaching@aligrimshaw.com

If Poets Ruled The World

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 28 Comments

 

If you brought poetry to your exhale

how would you breathe?

If you brought poetry to your cooking

how would it taste?

If you brought poetry to your singing

how would it sound?

If we brought poetry to the conversation

what would we hear?

Would we notice the moan of wind outside our arguments

that the water from the pipes is at a trickle, our absent neighbors

don’t stand in the front yard anymore, weeds thrive

overtaking the edible garden, while last year’s birdhouse

remains empty? A muffled fear

like cotton balls in our ears.

 

If I lived poetry

could I see the heart

underneath your skin?

 

© Alicia Grimshaw 2018

“Poetry, whether the writing itself is explicitly political or not, always seeks a better way to respond, to think, to live.” – E. Ce Miller, writer, journalist

Sharing this great quote from Moorezart

 

 

 

Unravel an opening

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 48 Comments

img_0282

It is a continual process to unweave
that which is truth from story. I pull

a thread, remove one line, observe how
the fabric changes, notice the new spaces

breathing between essential threads
that remain, a skeleton of existence

until extracting the unneeded
leaves what is left, sparsely resilient

penetrable light of a future once blocked
by memories tightly woven.

© Alicia Grimshaw 2018

CB&W Photo Challenge

Forgiving Fridays

unpuzzling the enemy

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 10 Comments

57FA6A00-5466-455D-AE3A-752BB65C334A

hate screams black in fear, with intent
to turn listener to stone or distraction

what you think is the opposition
dressed in defenses worn comfortably

is only,       just another
scared,       eyes-wide        and searching

no different than the face in
your bathroom mirror each morning

© Alicia Grimshaw 2018

Quadrille #61 – dVerse Poets Pub

Not for purchase

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 19 Comments

image

Your judgmental gaze cannot melt
the lines of my mistakes, they have become
collective beauty I hold as my reward for living
unimaginable shapes to fill with crayoned hues
I am my own coloring book
not available for purchase

© Alicia Grimshaw 2018

The Gift of Chaos

Quote ~ ~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 11 Comments

Enlight22

With all that is currently happening in the U.S. and the world, I feel the need to reshare this poem, Visiting With Chaos.There is an opportunity in the messiness of life. Will we choose to be loving learners or give up to fear?

Thank you to Vita Brevis, The Modern Poetry Magazine for publishing my poem. Click on the link to read it. – Visiting With Chaos

Sending love and a reminder that you are not alone.

Ali

 

Option – a thing that is or may be chosen

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 28 Comments

15958049-24D4-43AC-B78C-0819AA47009E

What if you believed it would all work out?

Would your breath come with ease
would you giggle at yourself, delight in the breeze
raise your waving hand, yell out “me too,”
with the aliveness of your five year old self?

Would you skip across the parking lot
dressed in sequins, colors that say, “I have arrived.”
Would you walk long enough to greet the dusk
stepping lightly until it kissed the sky goodnight?

What if you did?

© Alicia Grimshaw 2018