The prompts I obtained were read from the book, “Technicians of the Sacred” and the entry was “Coyote & Junco” from the Zuni Indians
- Clouds cover the earth
- Stand still
- All come in
I read a couple of other poems from The Poetry Foundation website for the group to obtain prompts from:
- Song of the Blue Ridge Mountains by Susan Nguyen
- The Metaphysics of Your Presence by Robert Bernard Hass
Here’s what I came up with:
Shared Peace
In this time of unrest and war,
violence and apathy,
political posturing, and
religious zealotry
comes the time of year
0f unrealized peace and goodwill.
Will the combatants stand still?
Will the walls fall,
allowing all to come in?
Or will the clouds of conflict
continue to cover the earth?
What can I say or do
in response to
the tears of sorrow,
the cries of grief
mourning ones wail?
What have I to offer
of hope,
of faith,
of love,
of peace?
It’s trite to say
I have inner peace,
have some of mine
o those bombarded
and bombed by
Hatred and Ignorance,
Greed and Power.
It’s trite,
but it’s true
I have walked through
personal wars and trauma.
None the like of those
seeking refuge and safety
across the world
but I sought refuge and safety
when all felt lost,
when I felt defeated.
Eventually I found it In others
willing, able to share
what they had to offer,
what they had experienced
in their own lives and journeys.
I can’t bring peace and safety
to those around the world
but I can share what I have
with those who enter my world
and those who I encounter
in the world around me.
I can share love, hope, and healing
as they have been shared with me.
lem 12/05/2023