Prayer of Gratitude

As this morning dawns,

May the world show up with brilliance and glory.

May the sun shine down upon all of us and fill us with joy.

May we wake up with a feeling of excitement to face the day.

May our steps be brisk and sure.

May the paths we walk on be straight and smooth.

The day lies before us to fill us with new ideas.

It unfolds with its serenity, and may we take it and care about it.               

There is so much to unfold before us, and we have an adventure to fulfill.

May we open it up like a page and delight in the phrases it reveals to us.

The mountains lay before us to open their arms and hold us.

A few birds soar quietly above us, and others sing a serenade.

May our soul be filled with peace and quiet.

May life continue to be generous with its love.

May we do this day justice and relish the wonders around us. May those we touch feel the comfort of our caring.

May our marks show up on this wondrous earth.

Stand ready to face the world.

Plant your feet solid, ready for this journey.

Divine Power, guide us and take our hands.

Help us to walk together in joy and tranquility,

peace and harmony.

And So It Is!

            © Hilda Ward, 2018

Sunrise, Mammoth Hot Springs
Photo by Neal Herbert, January 2016

View from the Fifth Floor

The bamboo wood plays shadows 

on the full moon framed in the window,

a glimpse of the universe spreading, 

spreading past all comprehension.

Put your head on the pillow.

Set your slippers by the bed

as sentinels waiting for the dawn.

Rise, swivel to touch the floor.

Light, glasses, radio, hot coffee.

Relief of knowing

you can coordinate each effort,

lack of surprises

a relief.

The pain of a divided world presses in. 

The view from the bedroom window

is a fraction of the real world.

Beneath, it is Guernica.

You have seen ages pass,

and now the cups of coffee are numbered.

Where is solace now?

Slippers by the bed,

the moon in your window?

The necessity of awareness,

or the losing of it?

© Evie Safran, 2018

Girl and the Moon
by the Estonian painter Karl Pärsimägi
from Wikimedia Commons
In public domain in the United States

Objects

Small objects,

some round, some square,

some big lozenges,

others egg-like, or sculpted, or cut

in clever shapes

I couldn’t have imagined a few years ago.

Stamped upon their collective visage

are numbers, letters, trademarks,

symbols of authority, and other magical incantations

which inform the reader (should he or she possess

the requisite microscopic ability) of contents,

definitions, and the all-important DOSAGE,

an Anglicized word from a forgotten Mediterranean dialect meaning TOO (dos) OLD (age).

Too old to what? you may ask. Why, too old to see,

too old to handle, too old to count, too old to read,

too old to remember, to ask questions, 

to think, to hear, to dream.

Fear not, imbiber, these are but overheard baggage

when the symbols are empowered

and the magic begins to roll.

Oh, did I mention the effects, i.e., the enumeration of miracles

to be wrought, along with the after-effects, 

the collateral effects, the side effects?

To be taken with water. Do not drink water

when dosage exceeds the square root 

of the mass of the earth’s moon. In case of eclipse,

drink heavily any liquid that comes to hand. If unable

to read these instructions, signify by sending 

a long accusatory letter to your doctor.

If directions are followed,

relief is almost certain, unless

it isn’t, in which case, it won’t be.

Does this topic upset you?

No problem. Just take a pill.

© George Phillips, 2018

Adrenallrx
by FtWashguy
from Wikimedia Commons