Poem: Sabbath

Take time for Sabbath
stop.
don't allow yourself
to keep going into busy
think, then empty your mind
take time hear the birds
the call of the dove
the dog and the faraway
coyotes' howl
take time for Sabbath
stop.
don't allow yourself to
keep going into busy
we are not meant
for constant movement
but to stop.
regroup.
listen.
bring into your mind
moments of Mystery
and silence
take them with you
when you return to busy
when you return to constant movement
remember the call of the
Wild Goose
the train in the distance
the laughter of children
and the silence of the tree
under whose shade
you sought solace
remember that God moment
and come back to it
in the midst of busy

Photo & Poem (c) 9.28.2016 Suzy Jacobson Cherry

Haiku: Skyward

Look skyward, my friend
Trees whisper your secret dreams
Divine wisdom hears

Poem & Photo (c) 12 October 2015

Poem: Ides of September

September Sky Over Mesa, Arizona
Look closely on the right - there is a rainbow!

 Undulating breezes tug at the
Skirts of the Sky Queen

Dressed in blue velvet laced

With wisps, clouds of gossamer

Dancing in the currents of Autumn

Never thirsting, for she possesses the

Pure Water of Life, Great River of Being

Her Brother, Mother, Father … Self

Holiness rains rich rhythms

Falling mists upon upturned faces

Of moss-grown pebbles;

Now rushing Waters, wild bubbling rapids

Tumble stones to gems to shining

Faces turned toward one another

Sky Queen, taking note,
Blankets her Earth-bound

Children in colorful drops of Light

Her very essence; Awakened,

They join her in the dance, inviting

The pure, bright Presence

Of new fallen snow

© 15 September 2015

Prayer Poem: Reflection

Pondering the passage of time
The moments left empty, or forgotten
Considering flights of youthful fancy,
Giving thanks for this day, each day,
A gift of Presence, unexpected, holy
Sweet mystery of life, take me
Unaware, bring me to angels
Show me Your face in the eyes
Of others whose fanciful youth
Led them away; help me give them
Something to eat, something to drink
For they are hungry, thirsty, empty
May my hands be Your hands,
My feet Your feet; my heart Your heart
That it may break, not at my own emptiness,
but at the empty cup
Of my sister, my brother, my friend
Help me to fill it with Your Holy Spirit
To bring refreshment to parched lips
And glorious song to lonely hearts
This I ask You, as I ponder my
Unworthiness and know that in You,
Even I am made worthy to fill Your cup

Amen

Poem: Demon - Twenty-Five of 30 #NaPoWriMo

Devils, they say, do not appear
In their own guise, but as innocence,
Beauty, or cuteness ready for cuddles
Small boys named Damien, clowns
With balloons, or puppies revealed
Only by a certain gleam in their eyes
Do not trust the pitiful whimpers of
Such bundles of fur, these tiny
Tremulous Tribbles, these terrifying
Terriers; be not led astray by the
Tales of tails wagging, and the
D.O.G. being G.O.D.
It's a trick, a flimflam, a con
Beware! Watch out for the shedding
Of hair and the beggins for pettins
And devils daring you to walk away
Without watching them dance
On tiny paws for bacon
It's easy to be taken in

Poem & Photo (c) 25 April 2015

Poem: Trees - Twenty of 30 #NaPoWriMo

Trees

To what heights might we climb
What dreams might we attain
If we but realize the Truth
We seek, yet when we find, reject
We climb, but when we reach, slip
Teachers go before us, show the Way
Though they walked ascetic, ask only
That we live and love and give
Yet here we stand, looking up, and
They who once walked barefoot
Stand upon pedestals built by those
To whom they handed branches -
Palm or bodhi; fig or mustard
We take, be it wine or bread
Or bowl of rice, and still
We do not understand

(c) 20 April 2015

Poem: Flicker - Eighteen of 30 #NaPoWriMo

Watch the flickering candle
Notice the empty space
Betwixt wick and flame
The space where God
Whispers secrets
We cannot hear, Words
That speak only to our hearts
God is neither wick nor flame
But is the Heat that melts
All who seek the Light
Do you think you know yourself?
In the heat of the Living Light
True colors are revealed,
Inevitable rainbows, for none
Can remain the same, untouched
Once the Light has caste
Its Glorious Light of Love
And whispered Truth
From within the space
Betwixt wick and flame

(c) 18 April 2015

Poem: Meteorite Life - Seven of 30 - NaPoWriMo

This momentary life
A flash of light falling
through the Universe
Star bright enough
To wish on, dreams
Pure enough to call
One's own, this life
A pebble in the River
Of Being, tossed
About by currents
Unexpected, tumbled
Smooth, so smooth
That by the end
This star turned stone
Will wash upon the Delta
Sands like glass
To hold up to the sun,
Casting rainbows upon
This momentary life
(c) 7 April 2015

Poem: This Ancient Stone

 

This crystal quartz wrapped in copper revealed itself to me
during the summer of 1987 at Venice Beach, CA

This ancient stone
Once called my name – I heard it
In the way my hand hovering
Over felt the gentle warmth:
I’m yours, choose me, it cried
A message of pure light to
My yearning spirit, gathered
From fields of quartz, rainbows
Of crystal hidden in the southern
Hills, gathered up by
Rainbow Children, worked with
Copper, silver, leather, wrapped
Into pendulum, necklace, this
My ancient piece of Earth,
My gift, my radio of pure white
Energy, this, my ancient stone
Mine.  Hers.  Gaia. God.
Mother Earth; Mother of All
This little piece of Her Light
Pure rainbow
Pure Light
Pure Love
Mine.

(c) 24 February 2015

Poem: Autumn Love Song

Listen to the winds, as
They blow in, laughing
Calling to the hearts
Of wandering spirits
Listen!  Whose Voice
Sings in the wind?
To whom does it call?

What secrets shared
In the song of morning breeze?
Sun warms the face of
Listener, bright rising
Day, followed by cool
Melody of whispering
Windsong

Smile! this Autumn
Love song, ballad of hope
A long awaited promise
Listen!  The Singer on the wind
In tune with Om of Creation!
The Rhythmic Key to a
Heart locked against
Dangers of honest Love

Butterfly landing
Upon the lotus, awakes
The sleeping dreamer

The Song of hope
blows in, and the Listener,
Becoming One, knows
The Voice, embraces the wind
Opening mind

The Voice, the Listener,
The Butterfly
All dance upon the wind
The Song of Love

(c) 27 August 2014
Suzy Jacobson Cherry

Poem: Under Stars

Under stars

They lay prone, backs

Flat, bending blades

Fragrant grasses,

Fresh mowed autumn

Fingers interlaced, they

Speak of the vast

Unknown, silently

Aware of attraction

Mysterious electricity

Tingling, unspoken yearning

This moment of eternity,

A memory

© 6 September 2013

Poem: sea otter

"methinks you are more
comfortable with
one toe in a boundary"
she said...


as we discussed my
recent slip into selfish
indignation, my
declaration of independence
belied by my fears
of non-acceptance

my toes will only
point one direction
at a time! i cried

i dip them in this
water, then that...
full immersion feels
like drowning...

Yet, it is all one
vast and living ocean
all waters come to
play in the bay
with the sea otters
for awhile

footprints in the sand
are washed away
with the waves of
eternal ebb and flow

sea otter, i shall slip
into the waters with 
the others, holding hands
that we might not
drift apart

(c) 22 February 2013

Poem: Peregrini

Not an ounce of the Irish, I am

Nonetheless Celt, the

Spirit of the Peregrini lives

In this Scotswoman's heart

The strength of the Dane

Her foundation, the wanderlust

Of the ancestors pulling

This pilgrim soul

Surrounded by the Angels

Seeking the Wisdom of Christ

Who has been the Light

Shining from the Dawn of Time

There is no better Pilgrimage

There is no other life

But the wandering life

Stagnant spirits haunt places

Regretting that they have not

Gone beyond boundaries

Regret upon regret

That they did not know

The Mystery of a God

And of a Life which

Cannot be bound,

As they have been

Caught between the

Imposition of fear

And of desire

Following the Mysterious

Light of the Christ

Toward the Glorious

Song of Creation

The Pilgrim need not board

Longboat, nor curragh, nor jet plane

But only must open the door

For the expansion of the mind

The opening of the heart

The emergence of the spirit

No longer bound by the limits

Of this temporal life

Surrounded by the Angels

Seeking the Wisdom of Christ

Who has been the Light

Shining from the Dawn of Time

There is no better Pilgrimage

(c) 17 January 2012

Poem: Falling Snow

Poem: Grotto

When there is no
Other shelter,
There is God
Wrapped about, invisible
Grotto, place
Of safe worship
Silence, wordless
Prayer
and there...
....in the midst
in the mist...
She kneels, her
Prayers upholding
Mine, her
Tears mingling
With mine, each
Prayer a bead
Each bead a
Stone, each stone
A wall between
My needs and
The buffeting winds
Of uncertainty

(c) 25 November 2012

Poem: Hurricane

Hurricane

In silent Eye
She pauses, empty
of expectation, void
of regret
In this moment
All thoughts suspended
In a vacuum, surrounded
By the roar of wind
And rain

In this moment
A Voice, not hers
Comes gently like a
Mother's lullaby, then
Steady, slow, deep
An ocean filled with
Treasure, welled up
On massive surf, and
Tossed upon the beach
Glittering before her:

The Voice...

It Calls her name,
It Calls her heart,
It Calls her soul...

In silence full
Of new anticipation
Eye moves on, and
She stands, arms
Thrown wide, aware
That she has become
An Eye within herself

She moves within
The storm, steady,
Driven, following the
Path the Voice revealed
Living committed
To turn the Perfect Storm
From destruction to
Construction

Then, falling on her knees
She screams, "Who am I, " 
Against the Wind,
"Who Am I to lead Your people
From their desperation?"

The Wind whirls
Around her, fills
Her lungs, kissing her
Cheeks, and she,
Left behind,
Understands

(c) 31 October 2012

Poem: Lughnasadh Shift

Lughnasadh Shift

Stepping out into sunrise

There is no doubt the Earth

Has turned, deep breaths

Confirm new attitude

Even in the summer desert

New bees buzzing and the

Morning song of mourning doves

Sings of a new harvest

Praises to Creation

In places far away, fresh

Hilltop balefires burn, while

Nimble fingers craft dolls

Of corn harvested fresh

Berries chosen  off the

Prickly vine burst juicy, heady

Taste of autumn rolls across

The skies, the scent of wood smoke

Touched with the promise of rain

Desert dancer, hands aloft, feet

Deep in Sacred Ground, becomes

One with Earth and Sky

This Holy Morning

This new season

This glorious reminder

That life is a circle; everything

Dies, feeds life and returns

Renewed and refreshed

Blessed to bless

And to remember

© 1 August 2012

Reflection: A Moment Out of Time

Sitting in a quiet place, eyes closed, breath soft as a baby entering sleep, I felt myself rise until I was surrounded by stars.  Colored nebulae swirled about me and I lost form.  Only Being, I heard the voice of God; a whisper - a song - a memory of before and an awareness of after...

All Is Eternal

Face tingling as I returned to Time and limitation, I knew.

Everything matters.

I am responsible.

In Time, we must reveal the Eternal.

Hebrew Bible: Psalm 90:1-2

"A Prayer of Moses, the man of God.  Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations.  Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God." ~ Psalm 90:1-2


I dwell in You, O my Lord
Not beside the road
With no riches to my name;
For in You I am home
Without You I would be
No less homeless than
The girl on the city streets
Begging for food to feed
Her hungry cat
Indeed, should I walk up
To her as she leans angry
Against the bricks of the ancient
Tenement, her cat curled by 
Her feet at the end of the
Clothesline leash, frayed where
The knot has rubbed against itself;
Should I walk up to her smiling
And she bore her anguished
Eyes into my privileged soul
I would find my roommate
My bunk-mate, sister, friend
She has been in You since
The day you formed her tiny
Feet within her mother's womb
Since the day I first curled
Fetal within, I was her friend
O Lord, You are our dwelling place
Never has there been a place
Where we could not find Home

(c) 1 August 2012

Pedestals of my Prayers

They Pray with Me