Tag: Hope

A Poet’s Prayer

~ Elizabeth W. Marshall ~ Leave a comment

wpid-IMG_20130430_184203.jpgSome of those songwriters
Man they slay me
Lassoing words up into something that goes round for eternity on repeat in your soul
Speaking words of wisdom
About world turning
And missing Mayberry, sitting on the front porch

When will the noteless poet penetrate words
Through the film of hurting humanity
Words of George asking Jane to stop this crazy thing
They too, plant into the culture deep roots of permanency.

Some of those songwriters
Man they nail it
With someone left the cake out in the rain
We live a lifetime repeating nonsense

Or remembering bridges over troubled waters
And never seeing friendship the same way again
Can a poet reign in a heart and cup it toward glory
Toward  all He is and made and does and loves

Some of those songwriters
Man they knock it out of the park
Taking words and sending them out onto the dance floor partnered with notes
To waltz and shag and boogey with words that we
Remember, memories like the corners of my mind

Can a noteless word dance in the silence, buoy
Hearts
Grab hold of  the hopeless and the beauty seeker
The longing one, the lonely one, the one following after
The heart of God.

Man those guys from Nashville, they really crush it
Dice and slice words on a blank page pair them with music
And give us beauty we remember forever
Can a poet in 2103 show His glory Hallelujah in the quiet

In the quiet of a place
When the music stops
Can the words alone
Pull back the lids of a complacent heart

And sing a song of noteless beauty

And whisper amazing grace, how sweet the sound.

Lord, give me words that soar and dance on the edges of the heavenlies
Or send me packing
Maybe to Nashville

Whisper A Pink Amen

~ Elizabeth W. Marshall ~ 3 Comments

Wordcandy May

Whisper A Pink Amen

Though it snows in the west and rains in the east, may I dance

Though Spring crawls, baby steps this way, these days, may we sing

With the grey shadowing pinks and the clouds hiding  hope, may we still rejoice

Still, the season hides her beauty timid as a dove, may I trust

Though the memory of past joy overshadows pregnant possibilities, may I know

That light will burn bright hope around the edges of the dark

Through all the seasons, for forever

Glory, glory,  Hallelujah, whisper soft a pink and tender

amen,

a song of certainty.

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Joining Tweetspeak Poetry and Wordcandy.me and 100 sweet bloggers with a wordcandy writing prompt for the lovely month of May. This one from Lyla Lindquist is exquisite. But maybe that’s just me.

A Circuitous Route

~ Elizabeth W. Marshall ~ 21 Comments

wpid-IMG_20130501_094144.jpgI am walking by the  way of winding.
Stepping back and moving forth.
Finding paths  like Mother May I
Stops and starts and winnowing backs.

I am breathing deep the air of waiting.
Laying down in fields of pining.
Grasping roots of ever-changing.
Finding great in fair to midland, growing.

I am holding on to glory
Surprised by every simple turn en route
Seeing through the lens poetic
Covered in sweet redemption singing.

I am walking round the labyrinth
Praying for the walk to bring
Joy in seeing eyes wide open, squinting barely letting in the light
Weeding out the root, watering dry soil.

I am seeing like a child again
Each turn of spoke and wheel
The way circuitous though it is
Is marked with everlasting wonder, change.

And I am seeing bends and breaks
A slowing with the margins wide
The ratcheted down, down gear shift
The death though slow of pride

Yes I am seeing childlike
The awe and wonder on the route
Parking trains, planes and automobiles
Awhile to walk the more
Circuitous route.

I am holding on to slippery Trust
Blinking back the saline droplets
Finding fresh the seeds of simple
Watering the heart to burst wide open, stretched.

I am knowing in deep places
That the dizzy winding way
Littered with uncertain lingering
Leads me still beside the place I am born to be.

So walk with me the route circuitous
Stumble on the rocks that bruise the skin
Run the race with wheels made to turn slow and steady
Trust  the way of wonder, winding serpentine with grace.

wpid-IMG_20130501_102233.jpg

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Joining Duane, Shelly, and Jennifer

Walking The Dogs: a lesson in faith

~ Elizabeth W. Marshall ~ 2 Comments

into every life a little rain
a fave of the rain leaves and flowers

They lead me down a wet dirt road
Of wonder
And I do
There was a break in the rain
After every cadence and rhythmic crazy percussion sound
Beat down hard in torrents for
A never ending time to get out the gopher wood
Sort of day
No a season, a long one
Where the rain is external internal incessant

And they lead me down the wet dirt road
The one with spilled smells of this won’t last forever
And we dodge puddles and look for damp hope
That this washed away the pitiful
Lord lead me not into a place of pity

Canines have a way of sniffing out the best spots
And pulling hard when you are dragged down in more than pluff mud

The raindrops are heavy on the leaves
And no rainbow has broken out it’s colorful
Hallelujah chorus
Yet
Just because you cannot see
Does not mean it is not there

The yellow lab finds glory all along the wet dirt road of wonder
I should have half his faith

The break in the symphony of heavenly wet
And we go spilling back out into the world
These dry bones
Should have known
It wouldn’t last forever.

It never does.
And there are smells and sights and sound on the wet dirt road
They won’t wait around forever
Joy doesn’t have an expiration date but today’s joy is
Today’s joy

Just ask the old yellow lab
Who’s on borrowed time

It’s time to walk in the rain.