poem

She Stood for Others – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 22 Comments
“Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.” – Winston Churchill

she stood for listening
overcoming discouragement
and air that never burned your nostrils

she led by digging weeds with you
side-by-side overheated or drenched.

she never let fear ride in the front seat

and forever reminded me
the sun’s position
changes everyone’s shadow
everyone’s

©Ali Grimshaw 2021

Quadrille Monday on dVerse Poets Pub – Join a friendly group of poets HERE

Photo taken on a family trip to NYC. I just love this mural.

Renewal Through Poetry: Writing Circle

Mon, Aug 23, 2021 4:00 PM PDT – Register HERE

Lavender Fields – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 24 Comments 
tending melancholy rows of dusk
swaying scented thoughts 
light eases away toward your side
of the world

barefoot
I close my eyes
to listen

our Mother Earth 
is singing us home

©Ali Grimshaw 2021

It is my dream to bring writers together from around the world to write together and listen with compassion. Join my for my next writing circle. All voices welcome.

Renewal Through Poetry: Writing Circle Monday, August 23, 2021 4:00 PM – 5:30 PM PDT

Register – HERE to write with us. We want to hear your words.

Eugi’s Weekly Prompt – Round the World – August 5, 2021. – Join the fun HERE.

Photo thanks to pixabay.com

Poems from the Circle

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 17 Comments 
Guardian

Lying on a bed
Of soft clover
And gentle ferns
I gaze up at you-
As your limbs
Reach to the sky
I cover my eyes
In an attempt
To shade from
The sunlight
Streaming down-
Noticing my
Squinting eyes
You quietly call
The gentle breeze
To craft a lovely canopy
From green leaves
Allowing me to
Once again
See you clearly-
Here we stay
Until the sun
Begins to set
Until you
Reach down
Lift me up
And tenderly
Place me
In the crook
Of your strong branch-
I rest my head
In peaceful sleep

By Kelley Morris

I am grateful for Kelley's permission to share her poem from a recent writing circle. I continue to meet amazing women across different time zones. You can find more of her poems on her blog, pianogirlthoughts.com

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.

Self-Compassion Through Poetry: Writing Circle, Friday, August 13, 9:30 – 11:00 am PDT. Register here

against the flow again – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 45 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

Come join us for Quadrille Monday at dVerse HERE

Lacework – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

~ Ali Grimshaw ~ 43 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

Join a welcoming community of poets for OPEN LINK NIGHT at dVerse Poets Pub HERE

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.





			

	


				
					


				
					


	

			
Access – A Poem By Ali Grimshaw
		

				

						 ~ Ali Grimshaw			 ~ 31 Comments					

				

		






a poem is a door
opening backward
or sliding sideways
for full human viewing

a poem invites Awe's cousin
Curiosity, to join you for a seat
on a soft metaphor
then reminds you to lean back

a poem offers scaffolding 
for fear, for wonder
for whatever arrives next
with structure and airflow 
so nothing gets too stagnant

including you 
and passing light
through a green passageway

©Ali Grimshaw 2021

Photo taken in Porto, Portugal.

Quadrille "Curiosity" on dVerse Poet's Pub - Join the fun HERE

			

	


				
					


	

			
Snapshot – Poem By Ali Grimshaw
		

				

						 ~ Ali Grimshaw			 ~ 61 Comments					

				

		

“Beautiful things don’t ask for attention.” 
– The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, 2013 –





your arms around me
encircled together
heart to heart

someday I will touch a photo
this moment's embrace
replaying this day

until then
I am noticing the feeling
while I still have you near

I am memorizing the shape
of holding you
holding me

©Ali Grimshaw 2021

Photo of my son and I on my birthday 2020. 

Poetics on dVerse Poets Pub - Come join the fun HERE.






			

	


				
					


	

			
No Experience Needed – Poem by Ali Grimshaw
		

				

						 ~ Ali Grimshaw			 ~ 20 Comments					

				

		

“Poetry is not only dream and vision; it is the skeleton architecture of our lives. It lays the foundations for a future of change, a bridge across our fears of what has never been before.” – Audre Lorde  










Come write with me 





throw your words on the wall 





like paint. 





Splattering in play.





See which ones stick. 





Watch which ones fall. 





See the bridge





that you have forgotten. 





The girl inside you 





is longing to get messy.





©Ali Grimshaw 2021





Self-Compassion Through Poetry: Writing Circle 





Friday, June 4, 8:30 – 10:00 am PDT. Register here










Photo taken in Amsterdam.