Contemplative poetry

Here is another great poem. This week my course mate and I are planning a contemplative worship service for the afternoon. I am drawn lately to the integration of modern poems into liturgy and spiritual practices. So tomorrow, we are hoping to read Mary Oliver's Wild Geese as a centering poem. peace.

Wild Geese
By Mary Oliver

You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
for a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting--
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.

Litany by Billy Collins

One of the best recitations of Billy Collin's poetry I have heard since seeing the man himself 6 years ago:
Litany recited by a three year old

The words are below:

Litany by Billy Collins

You are the bread and the knife,
The crystal goblet and the wine...
-Jacques Crickillon

You are the bread and the knife,
the crystal goblet and the wine.
You are the dew on the morning grass
and the burning wheel of the sun.
You are the white apron of the baker,
and the marsh birds suddenly in flight.

However, you are not the wind in the orchard,
the plums on the counter,
or the house of cards.
And you are certainly not the pine-scented air.
There is just no way that you are the pine-scented air.

It is possible that you are the fish under the bridge,
maybe even the pigeon on the general's head,
but you are not even close
to being the field of cornflowers at dusk.

And a quick look in the mirror will show
that you are neither the boots in the corner
nor the boat asleep in its boathouse.

It might interest you to know,
speaking of the plentiful imagery of the world,
that I am the sound of rain on the roof.

I also happen to be the shooting star,
the evening paper blowing down an alley
and the basket of chestnuts on the kitchen table.

I am also the moon in the trees
and the blind woman's tea cup.
But don't worry, I'm not the bread and the knife.
You are still the bread and the knife.
You will always be the bread and the knife,
not to mention the crystal goblet and--somehow--the wine.

Poetry for the first time

Yesterday evening contained some of my favorite activities: drinking mulled wine, playing board games, reading and listening to poetry and laughter... lots of laughter. With tepid glasses of heavily spiced wine we shared our moments of when we came to know poetry, that certain poem, that author, the image, the word... For me, it wasn't difficult to remember. Sitting in Ms. McNealy's tenth grade class I encountered the world of poetry as never before. I had long loved the wordsmith,Shakespeare, and by the time I was 16, sure, had read the oft poem now and again... but it was in this class, this moment (let's say it was raining and the poem was projected onto the wall and we followed along in our books) that I first remember feeling that spinning in my chest that only comes with the perfectly crafted metaphor or image... I hear the notes of a perfectly harmonized song in the words. The poem then? "They Eat Out" by Margaret Atwood. At the time, I was only a budding feminist with a loose concept of the socially indoctrinated and all the passion and outrage that youth allows. I love reading this poem now and remembering what it meant for me then and I can see how I have changed and grown. This is not the most beautiful poem I have ever read, it is not the last poem I will ever read, but it is the first poem that spoke my language... it is the first poem that I could hear speak and I was never the same again.

They eat out

by Margaret Atwood

Margaret Atwood

In restaurants we argue

over which of us will pay for your funeral

though the real question is

whether or not I will make you immortal.

At the moment only I

can do it and so

I raise the magic fork

over the plate of beef fried rice

and plunge it into your heart.

There is a faint pop, a sizzle

and through your own split head

you rise up glowing;

the ceiling opens

a voice sings Love Is A Many

Splendoured Thing

you hang suspended above the city

in blue tights and a red cape,

your eyes flashing in unison.

The other diners regard you

some with awe, some only with boredom:

they cannot decide if you are a new weapon

or only a new advertisement.

As for me, I continue eating;

I liked you better the way you were,

but you were always ambitious.

Lord's Prayer from the New Zealand Prayer Book

I am helping plan chapel service for the first time next Wednesday and this experience moved me to explore various prayers and petitions from different liturgical traditions. This particular version of the Lord's Prayer, from the New Zealand Prayer Book is beautifully worded. I am enjoying the way that different elements of the prayer emphasized help me to hear the message of the prayer new again.

Eternal Spirit, Earth-maker, Pain-bearer, Life-giver,

Source of all that is and that shall be,

Father and Mother of us all,

Loving God, in whom is heaven:

The hallowing of your name echo through the universe!

The way of your justice be followed by the peoples of the world!

Your heavenly will be done by all created beings!

Your commonwealth of peace and freedom sustain our hope and come on earth.

With the bread we need for today, feed us.

In the hurts we absorb from one another, forgive us.

In times of temptation and test, strengthen us.

From trials too great to endure, spare us.

From the grip of all that is evil, free us.

For you reign in the glory of the power that is love, now and for ever.

Amen

My Niece, Beatrice

This is a picture of Bea in the baby bjorn. It is my first time with the Bjorn and I have to say, I'm quite a fan. The only difficulty is managing to keep track of her socks (which she likes to kick off.) Autumn has always been my favorite time of year and it was really great to get to enjoy some of the crisp Washington air with Beatrice and my sister, Kelly (the reason Beatrice has a smile on her face in this picture below.)

Beatrice is now up for solid foods! Semi-solid anyway, so I was helping her try out some avocado. So far she seemed to enjoy this particular food, but was a bit hesitant to try it this day.

Eventually she went for the bait and readied herself for some delicious baby guacamole! I arrived back in Berkeley and realized that most of my photos were of my niece...oops.. well, can you blame me? She's so adorable!

Beatrice is crazy about my dad; she seems to like to pull his mustache much to the great amusement of the passerby. :-)

Oh man, only someone with Eskesen blood can express this kind of enthusiasm for butternut squash at such a young age! She has good taste!

This is probably one of my favorite expressions that Bea has. It seems to surface when she is trying to solve a puzzle, like how to get my necklace to fit better in her mouth or this particular puzzle appears to be how to make Bea's bee's bell ring whilst making the wings crinkle and also removing the eyes... or perhaps she is just giving the bee a face massage. :)

Mumford and Sons at the Paramount in Seattle

Sometimes I am lucky, and sometimes I am EXTREMELY lucky. This past Sunday was one of the latter. I told my long time friend, Eryn, that I would be visiting the greater Auburn area for a few days and she responded with the fact that she might, indeed, have an extra ticket to the sold-out Mumford and Sons show at the paramount the very Sunday I would be in town. (!!!!) Not only are Mumford and Sons one of my favorite bands (more on that to come) but the Paramount is a beautiful venue, Eryn is a great friend and as an extra bonus I had a chance to reconnect with a long time childhood friend, Darby :) It was a very good night.

This is a picture of us in front of the Paramount (left to right) Eryn, Darby and me!

Pictures taken during the show. The musicians in Mumford and Sons play an incredible variety of instruments and I was impressed to see them switch to from piano to guitar or guitar to banjo to drums throughout the show. This is one of the reasons I really enjoy live gigs, I feel like you get to really know the band and the members abilities.

This band has some well crafted lyrics and listening to them live I felt I heard even more grace permeate their album. Perhaps it is my few months in a Lutheran Seminary that has me listening for it, or maybe it is all that John Donne using the same style for both his love for God and for women, but in Mumford and Sons there are some lyrics that for me express the divine love I've come to know as God's :) Plus the MUSIC IS JUST PLAIN GOOD! hooray! :)

Just a sampling of lyrics from Mumford and Sons (have I convinced you yet to at least give them a listen?)

Awake My Soul (apparently a song that was written the first time they jammed together)

How fickle my heart and how woozy my eyes
I struggle to find any truth in your lies
And now my heart stumbles on things I don't know
This weakness I feel I must finally show

Lend me your hand and we'll conquer them all
But lend me your heart and I'll just let you fall
Lend me your eyes I can change what you see

After the Storm:

And there will come a time, you'll see, with no more tears.
And love will not break your heart, but dismiss your fears.
Get over your hill and see what you find there,
With grace in your heart and flowers in your hair.

okay. enough of that now. They are great...the concert was great... and if you can get tickets I would recommend that you go :)
But your soul you must keep, totally free

Water Fountains

Today was one of those remarkable days when timing works out just so perfectly. I made it to the San Fransisco airport and passed the circus that they call a security check point and then to my terminal just in time to board my plane and walk right on board. You know what? I even had a bit of extra time to get something to drink and low and behold the public water fountain was there at my service.

This is one aspect of the United States that I really love--free, clean, accessible water in public. Now I am sure there are those out there who would say that it is not really THAT clean because it does might taste chemically to them, or that it is not filtered properly. What I have found is true for myself is when I am REALLY thirsty... I am a lot less picky on if there is copper in the pipes through which my water flows.

From my travels outside the United States, I can tell you that it is not a ubiquitous truth that a water fountain will always be there to refill your Nalgene or Sigg bottle. Sure you could always use the tap, but what is the fun in that, and in certain countries one set of pipes runs to the tap and the other to water fountains for a reason...

Which brings me back to my original praise of the airports in the states. Yes, we are ridiculously over the top for security for even domestic flights, the food is expensive, but you know what? I am never left thirsty and that seems to make everything a little bit brighter :) or at least better hydrated.