I Pray

I sing
I shout
I chant and pout
I run in place
I sit still
I look in your face
I pray

I write
I dream
I beg and scheme
I ponder
Take pictures
Gaze all around me in wonder
I pray

I stretch
I dance
I take a chance
I work as I hum
Touching to heal
I play the drum
I pray

I cry
I doubt
Try to work it all out
I fight the disease
Breathing deep
I fall on my knees
I pray

I balance
I walk
Try to walk the talk
I circle round
Taking a step
I hope peace can be found
I pray

I search
Turn the pages
I read the wisdom of the ages
Sink into this place of thought
Want to be free
I try to do what I ought
I pray

I live
I love
Thinking on the things above
I dance and paint
I let go
I look to the saints
I pray

I bow
I stand
I play in the band
I hang with the crowd
walk a lonely path
I sing praises out loud
I pray

I listen
I meditate
Let the spirit agitate
I hope my heart
laugh as we share
be in the present
show how much I care
I pray

by Julie A. Bonde, 1/29/11

Sometimes I try to Give Words to the Sunrise

Sometimes I try to give words to the sunrise

It’s like trying to photograph the ocean

My words cannot truly pay homage to the abundance of the light

The exquisite joy of leaving the darkness behind to begin anew

Just as my picture cannot gather in the wide expanse of water

On the horizon of the sea where the edge of earth meets sky

And yet in this sudden glorious moment of dawn

I have this gnawing desire to capture the moment of wonder

The blazing fiery colors echoing across the sky and my heart

In my greed I want to hold on to richness of it all

I want to frame the picture on my wall

And carry it with me through the daily walk

But words fail me and photographs are a poor imitation

Sometimes I want to write a song that explains

How abundant Love is, how deep and wide and everlasting

The Spirit is all around us each and every moment

I can’t reach my arms wide enough or cry hard enough

My laughter only can tease you with hints

I want to wrap it up and give you this gift I know is possible

And then I look into the smiling eyes of the elderly

Hear the laughter of the children playing

Taste the sweetness of the mango dripping down my chin

Watch the squirrels at play outside my window

Touch the extreme softness of a hard mountain rock

Feel the healing in the music of friendship

And I know that words and pictures are not necessary

the light is too abundant and there is no holding on

The sunrise in my heart
the love felt so deeply within
The everlasting song

Will be found wherever I go

Jules

Saturday, September 25, 2010