Thursday, August 18, 2016

Catching Bubbles



Poetry Friday is here!


Photo by Leo Rivas-Micoud.

Join me in a deep collective sigh. Inhale through your nose, slowly, deeply. Open your mouth and exhale with an audible sigh. Ahhhhhh. 

Better now?

Maybe, one more!  Ahhhhhhh.

And on to Poetry Friday. I am delighted to host the round up today, though how I managed to sign myself up on the day after I've returned from a week of teaching at a yoga training, I have no idea. Ahhhhhh. 

My offering today is a few excerpts from books I've been reading. 

from "Passing Ordinary Time"
by Enuma Okoro

It is a hard art to learn,
catching quiet
by palms raised
cupped in 
air shifting location
here and there like
trying to guess the pattern of falling leaves,
and hoping to feel
the soft descent of moments
when silence slips
between sounds.

--collected in At the Still Point by Sarah Arthur, Paraclete Press


from The Beautiful Word by Tama Fortner

Sometimes our prayer is simply a breath. We exhale the worries and wonders and restless wanderings of our lives and place them in God's hands. Then we inhale the provision and the promises and the peace of the Almighty. We let go to just be ...


from Walking on Water by Madeline L'Engle

Creativity opens us to revelation, and when our high creativity is lowered... so is our capacity to see angels, to walk on water, to talk with unicorns. In the act of creativity, the artist lets go the self control which he normally clings to, and is open to riding the wind. Something almost always happens to startle us during the act of creating, but not unless we let go our adult intellectual control and become as open as little children This does not mean to set aside or discard the intellect, but to understand that it is not to become a dictator for when it does we are closed off from revelation. 

Take a breath. 

Cup your hands. Catch a bubble. 

Become as a little child and ride the wind.









28 comments:

  1. Thanks, Dori, I needed that sigh! And thanks for hosting after such a busy week. These excerpts are wonderful– food for the soul. I especially love that first piece from "Passing Ordinary Time." Off to go find me some bubble time!

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  2. We're on exactly the same wavelength this week -- joy in ordinary moments!!

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  3. "open to riding the wind" is a perfect image to use when describing the effect of being creative. Yay, creativity! We need more of it!

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  4. Thanks for hosting, Dori - those are perfect excerpts for encouraging and inspiring writers!

    Going to go catch my bubble now...

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  5. Inhaling provision, promises, and peace! Welcome back from your yoga week, and thanks for hosting, Dori!

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  6. Dori, I just returned home from a trip, too, so I admire you for getting this together, and sharing advice for "catching quiet", often needed. Thanks for hosting and for sharing some of what you brought home!

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  7. Ahhhh. Why do we do that so seldom? I love yoga. I need more in my life. I love that L'Engle quote. Thanks for hosting!

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  8. These are quotes worth memorizing as a quieting mantra. Thank you. I'm reaching for that L'Engle book.

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  9. Hands cupped, breath released. Your post resonates with me on many levels. Thank you for hosting. =)

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  10. Hi Dori,
    I love the quotes you've chosen, from a book I purchased for myself after seeing your recommend of it. Thanks for hosting!

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  11. If only bubbles didn't break so easily! Speaking of which, I posted Breakage by Mary Oliver at my blog, Bildungsroman.

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  12. Dori,

    How lovely to "meet" you here and now. I awoke a little while ago and knew I wouldn't be going back to sleep. I'm a Teacher Librarian and it's easy to use an interruption in sleep for thinking. I turned to writing instead....turning again to Poetry Friday and find such beautiful thoughts as "catching quiet" and the prayer of a breath.
    These words are a tonic.
    Thank you for the lovely bubbles and for hosting this week.


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  13. A heartfelt thanks for hosting, Dori! I love the words you shared from The Beautiful Word by Tama Fortner. Yes, we must exhale in order to inhale. It is the story of my life.

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  14. Okoro's description of "trying to catch the pattern" feels to me like a perfect description of the metaphorical thinking poets need. Thanks for sharing and for hosting this week!

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  15. Thank-you for hosting, Dori, and giving us time and inspiration to see and enjoy the simple, beautiful things.

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  16. "Catching quiet" -- what a beautiful image. Love the poems, Dori. Thanks for hosting!! xo

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  17. Thank you for hosting today, Dori, and thank you for sharing these soothing words. I especially love the idea of finding those moments
    "when silence slips/between sounds." Such a challenge in our noisy world!

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  18. Doraine, this is just the post I needed this morning! I've enjoyed Madeline L'Engle's book more than once, and I definitely believe in talking to unicorns. xo

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  19. Dori, thanks so much for hosting and for sharing those wonderful excerpts. The images of catching quiet and being open to riding the wind are lovely and powerful.

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  20. Thank you for hosting today, Dori. Madeleine L'Engle's last line in your quote about staying open to revelation is just beautiful.

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  21. "Riding the wind," love it! Thanks for the peaceful moment, and I look forward to exploring this idea with teaching kids how to embrace creativity.

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  22. Dori,

    Thanks for doing the roundup this week. great post! Unfortunately, with the mania for high stakes testing in schools these days, our children are given little time to ponder and to exercise their creative abilities...and to "take a breath." I hope that changes soon.

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  23. Dori,
    Thanks so much for hosting today and for reminding us to take that breath again and again. It's just what I need this morning!

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  24. Dori, I'm catching your positive vibes as I travel to upstate NY for a family weekend. Thank you for sharing all the quotes, letting me realize the power of breath, and for hosting PF. I will send in my post later in the day when I am connected again.

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  25. Dori: In today's post you quote from a book I own, and from one of my favorite authors. This is my first viewing of your blog, and already I'm hooked! Thanks for sharing ....

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  26. I'm in today with a newly discovered poem by Grace Nichols "The books I love..." I've been on a brief hiatus, but renewing my desire to share on Fridays with PF friends. Thanks, Dori, for sharing these excerpts and for some new titles to explore.

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  27. Thank you, thank you for remind me to breathe!

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  28. Lovely pieces, Dori. Thank you, and thanks for hosting!

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