Womb to Womb

Womb to womb
The knowledge passes
There is no other way
It could have been

Sisterhood is not a myth
Or if it is it has achieved
Its mythic size and shape
O’er countless generations

In secrets whispered by
Small flickering fires and
Painted on the walls of dark
Caves through the ages

Many of us they reviled
And burned as witches
Frightened by our woman’s
Power and our magic

And even now when we are
At a far remove from caves
Still I teach my daughters
In the ancient secret ways

Men speak of wars and
Weapons and of conquest
But it will be women who
Determine our survival

Night Magic

The petals of the roses
Are so silken soft that ~
If I close my eyes ~ I’m not
Sure I can feel them ~ or if
It’s only my imagination ~

The breeze lifts my hair from
My cheek ~ and recombs it
Into an entirely different style ~
And it too has a soft and
Silky feel between my fingers ~

The garden is alive with
Possibilities tonight ~ there
Is a restlessness in the air ~
Movement at the very edges
Of my vision ~ and whispers ~

Darkness has cloaked the
Everyday ~ and beckoned to
The hidden magic that only
Comes out at night ~ and
Tonight I am a part of it all ~

And afterwards ~

I don’t even know what called
Me from my twisted sheets ~ but
I know that it was not a dream ~
For there is a path of petals
From the garden to my bed ~

Mutability

I watch the way the flame
Changes the wood
The smaller pieces writhe
And twist and then surrender
To their appointed fate

The logs are dry and soon
The fire claims them
From within ~ till
What was once so solid
Has turned to weightless ash

They say that matter cannot
Be created or destroyed
But only changed in nature
Ice to liquid or to gas
Solid flesh to spirit only

What they call science
I call magic ~ I cannot
Think of it in any other way
Perhaps it’s just the language and
Not the logic that divides us

Where you call gravity and fractals
And cats which either live or don’t
All scientific questions
To me they are the stuff of magic
Gifts of a whimsical Universe

The Music of the Bells

For the full effect, click on this link to hear the musical inspiration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nSqYO0wym8M

I stand at the edge of the woods ~
Trying to see into the darkness
Of the forest ~ as the music of the bells
Rings in my ears and my heart ~
Falling invisibly round my face and hair
Like showers of crystal ice and fire ~

I follow the trail of candles that
Suddenly appears between the trees ~
Beckoning me ever deeper ~ calling me
Into the mystery and the magic ~
The beauty of the music still thrills
My spirit to its core ~ and I am moved
And shaken ~ and stirred to depths
I did not know my soul possessed ~

The grace of special moments
Such as these ~ is that they take you
Higher than you have ever been before ~
Unable to fall back to where you were ~
And longing to fly higher ~ steeped
In beauty and in light and love ~

Joy in the Morning

One minute I am
Balancing my checkbook ~
The next I am standing
On a childhood porch ~
Smothered in pink
Sweetheart roses ~
Smelling like the
Dawn of all creation ~

I can almost feel ~
The delicate touch of the
Early morning air ~
Cool against my skin ~

It feels as if there’s
Birdsong in my veins ~
My knees and elbows tingle ~
In that one moment
It comes flooding back ~
Those magic moments
From my youth ~
When I was most alive ~

Even then ~
I must have
Realized those times
Were special ~ meant
To be stored away ~
So that they could
Be taken out ~
Unwrapped ~
Remembered ~
Savored ~

I am so grateful
For the kindness and
The foresight ~
Of a Universe which
Gives such lovely gifts
On a Monday morning ~

The Pearls

I reach for the pearls
That you gave me ~
And clasp them
Round my neck ~
The last gift that
You gave me ~
My last tie to you ~
Lies cold and heavy
Against my skin ~
The way my heart
Lies leaden in my breast ~

And I wonder if
It will ever go away ~
This chill that ices
My bones ~ and
Makes all thought
Of warmth and comfort ~
Seem like a mirage
Or a magic spell ~
From long ago ~

Sometimes I think
I should rid myself
Of this last reminder ~
But I know
I never will ~ just
As I know that I
Will never be rid
Of the memory of you ~

I wonder
If you ever think of me ~
If you ever remember
The good times ~
Before it all went
So very wrong ~
So very quickly and
So finally ~

So hate me if you will
But don’t forget me ~
I could bear anything
But that ~

If I would go on ~
I must believe that ~
So long as this world
Shall hold us both ~
You will remember me ~
As I remember you ~

(Originally published November 29, 2012)

Forest Destiny

I’ve never been this
Deep within the forest ~
So I’ve no way to know ~
If silence is the norm
Or if this is unusual ~

I’m sure that I saw
Movement from the
Corner of my eye ~
But when I turn to look
The stillness holds ~

Am I enchanted ~
Or is it the forest ~
My senses are disordered ~
But I sense magic
In the air ~

This is the sort of place
That promises all kinds
Of marvels ~ to those who
Stray within its borders ~
And some will never leave ~

Deeper I travel into the
Secret depths ~ amid the ferny
Spires that edge the path ~
The trees bend closer to
Me as I pass by ~

I have a rendezvous ~ beneath
The oldest and most powerful
Of them all ~ the witch has
Called and I must answer ~
It is my duty and my destiny ~

My shoulders ache beneath
This burden I cannot put down ~
If magic makes an end of me ~
I leave this record of my journey ~
So that the world will know ~

Though I might not have won
The battle ~ I was in the fight ~
I pray you lay my bones in the
Forest where I fell ~
And remember me with honor ~