poetic-sphere-testing

let all the light falling fill you today

emil.blums@gmail.com (Your Body) — Mon, 07 Aug 2023 03:22:18 GMT

Where else can you let the light in.

listen while you read

Feel All The Light Falling

meditation on the Autumnal Equinox

Let all the light fall today

in a rare, receiving way.

Fully, equally, wholly

onto, into, your hemispheres.

Your north and south.

Your left and right brain.

Your masculine and feminine.

Conscious and unconscious;

actual and potential self.

Pause.

Close your sunlit eyes

and slowly, slowly breathe.

Open.

Widen.

Feel the life-giving, life-renewing rays

enter the center, the equator

of your body, your being.

Bringing all parts of your inner world

into great balance.

Bathing all parts of you in greater warmth

and health. Brightening,

lightening your places, crevices, passages

of darkness, sadness, hiddenness,

shadow.

Let all the new light falling,

streaming,

seeking,

find and fill you this day,

with a keener seeing,

sense of turning;

promise of becoming.

a thought

The sun is the source of all life.

Yours included.

a QUESTION

What if you thought of the full spectrum of light another way: in its full range of life-giving properties. From supporting the health and vitality of your body, to enabling the food you eat to grow and thrive, to dispelling some darkness or sadness in your heart or spirit.

One member said

"This gives a whole other meaning to being a Sun-worshipper."

a Call to experience

Take time to ease back somewhere, eyes closed or open, and simply, quietly bathe and breathe for awhile in the Sun's living rays, its renewing energies.

Earth's light shows

emil.blums@gmail.com (Your Body) — Mon, 07 Aug 2023 01:55:51 GMT

Sometimes the world around us is cinematic.

listen while you read

The Waters

The ones that anoint you,

body and soul.

That fall

from the heavens

in the form of rain,

soft and clear.

That fall

from the sun

and moon,

in showers

of pure light.

That rise

from your heart

to your eyes,

as tears of joy ~

when great joy is there,

or deep presence,

or great sadness.

That bathe you

in their beauty,

blue oceans to

mirror-faced lakes.

All the waters of life,

aliveness,

that flow

through your days;

that will always find you,

fill you,

body and soul.

a thought

We can be part, are part, of Nature's daily theatre.

a QUESTION

Having a front row seat on life is fine, and better than a back seat. Or a partial view. But what if you choose to be in the heart of every experience, large or small, instead of being in the audience? Where instead of spectating you're dynamically interacting, part of the whole ensemble?

one member said

"I never connected my emotions with the light before."

a call to experience

Step into the story the light is shaping, is infusing. In any place you're living or traveling through. Bring your mind and body completely into each scene, onto the living stage, curtain going up. Engage full-on with all the elements, the atmosphere, with Nature's actors and the other characters around you.

let your inner Sun & Moon also illuminate your days

emil.blums@gmail.com (Your Body) — Mon, 07 Aug 2023 01:45:53 GMT

A Sun and Moon exist within you,

rise and shine beautifully, sometimes mysteriously,

in their own way, through you.

listen while you read

Sun & Moon

Receiving and reflecting.

The light of the solar.

The light of the lunar.

The outer and

inner sun and moon

that illuminate the days,

nights and glories
of our cosmic bodies.

As they rise and set

so faithfully,

so generously.

a thought

Radiance abounds. From the heavens

and from hearts, souls, faces, eyes.

a QUESTION

We're often so caught up in our physical bodies we forget we're also cosmic bodies, made of the same stardust that makes up the galaxy. That beyond our skin and bones we're also subtly ethereal and, we could say, celestial. So what if you brought this extra-dimensional awareness just as strongly into your daily consciousness?

One member said

"I am a constellation."

a Call to experience

Explore coming to your days and nights as both a receiver and reflector of a sea of cosmic energies, solar to lunar to stellar we swim in, bathe in constantly. Visualize yourself, too, as an emanator of your own pure and rare heartlight, soul-light, eye-light.

this is what you're made of

emil.blums@gmail.com (Your Body) — Sat, 05 Aug 2023 16:11:55 GMT

Open yourself to it all.

listen while you read

How Will You Begin

Or continue.

To see and feel,

bring to light

far more of your self.

Who you really,

beautifully and so one-

of-a-kindly are.

Cast off the cloaks

of whatever you’re not,

or thought you had to be.

Find and live

the un lived, undiscovered

parts of your life.

The buried treasures

of your body, mind, heart

waiting to be discovered

and embraced,

honored and expressed.

Pose big, beautiful,

questions to yourself.

Ones ready to reshape you

just by courageous asking,

honest pondering. Starting

from your soul.

Begin new conversations,

fresh and freeing conversations,

with and without words.

With the world around you:

the people, the Earth

and humanity around you.

End those you’ve outworn,

or have worn you out.

Kindle your deeper passions

and compassions,

from glowing embers

to roaring bonfires.

Re-imagine

how much more

is possible, dreamable.

Where the world is

your oyster,

full of pearls.

Re-visit what is,

in this here, this now,

most natural, vital,

joyful; what brings you

alive. Maybe

the music of Brahms

or birds; the taste

of true love, friendship,

sunlight.

Because another future

may be calling ~

for you to enter,

for you to begin.

a thought

The light enters us in many ways.

Through our eyes, our skin, our spirit.

a QUESTION

How does the presence or absence of natural light

affect your body, your mood? Your sense of comfort,

or connection. Where else inside you does it want

to come in, to flow through you?

One member said

"I'm learning how to glow more."

a Call to experience

Pause now and then to sense how the light is touching you,

outside and in, from your skin to your spirit. How it fills

or refreshes or nourishes any part of you.

think of all the light, now and from time past, filling the spaces you're in

emil.blums@gmail.com (Your Body) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:59 GMT

How the light, like music, can hold, can evoke

many memories, reveries.

listen while you read

The Old Victrola

When you were young,

what songs blossomed

from the golden flower

of your mouth?

What music floated out

when the silver needle fell.

When the sitters, the dancers

tilted their ears,

their bodies

in the long room

leavened, like now,

with March light

ladling in

through these near and far

French doors

onto the blond wood floors,

the dove-grey walls,

onto their bare calves,

their soft hands.

Lichterfelde Ost,

Berlin, Germany

a thought

The light imprints itself both visibly

and invisibly.

And even after it has disappeared,

it has altered things.

a QUESTION

What visceral experiences of light in your childhood do you remember? What about recent ones? What kinds of light directly, sometimes immediately, affect the atmosphere of a room; your mood, your emotions, positively or otherwise. And how conscious are you of the correlations, the effects?

one member said

"I'm taking myself more mindfully

whenever I can, to places

where the light inspires good feelings."

a call to experience

Open yourself to taking note, to sensing, inside you, how the light of different kinds, and different hours of the day, the night, different weathers and seasons, or in rooms or other settings, relate to your various states of mind, body, spirit. Or alter them.

And wonder, now and again, how, maybe far back in time, maybe in distant history, the light of a place you're in may have brought its presence ~ and added its essence ~ to the thoughts, feelings and moments of others who were here before you, before now.

those places of light that draw you to them

emil.blums@gmail.com (Your Body) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:58 GMT

Everyone has a favorite setting

to savor the light in.

From gardens to forests,

park benches to sandy beaches.

listen while you read

Elysium

I think of you dancing

across a forest floor,

an ancient forest

filtering morning light

and the high-pointed notes

of hidden birds.

I think of you gliding

through this sea of green

forest flowing

with mosses and ferns,

your bare, star-stemmed body,

all cream and rose,

mirroring the grace

and joy of a doe

as you move swiftly

over the fragrant earth,

so free and flush

with life and loveliness.

~ in the Pacific NW ~

a thought

Certain luminous places

can offer us such comfort,

or refreshment, peace,

or feelings of freedom.

a QUESTION

What if you followed all the light-framed, light-gilded places that invite you to them? And opened to communing in and with them, or even more.

one member said

"My garden, when it's blooming

with morning light, is my haven."

a call to experience

When you're next in a favorite or newfound sanctuary, in Nature or elsewhere, enfolded in a lambent or lucent way, sense more into what it is about being there that embraces or entrances you. And how else its spirit may want to move yours . Its Genius loci , as the ancient Romans called it. Maybe even inspiring you to break into song there, or dance like the young lady dancing across an ancient forest floor ...

the joy of living in brightness

emil.blums@gmail.com (Your Body) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:57 GMT

Living in a brighter reality

uplifts our days, our moments,

our faith in the world's well-being.

listen while you read

Mesimeri | Siesta

Sun-caked white walls.

Cascades of bougainvillea.

Scents of sweet basil,

jasmine, geranium

that plume as you pass

through the quiet hours.

Sea-blue shutters closed.

Stillness.

Even the cicadas slighter.

The sleeping bodies

of the islanders lighter.

The passage of time slower.

On the harbor of Korissia,

on the Aegean island of Kea

in the Cyclades, in Greece

a thought

Think of the shared natures of people

from the tropics and other sun~strong

latitudes & longitudes.
From Greece to Australia

to Southern California.

a QUESTION

Where have you observed the uplifting effects of being in bright-wide weather? The effects on your own or others' bodies or personalities. Lighter-limbed? Lighter-hearted? More relaxed, easygoing?

One member said

"The brighter the day is outside, the wider

I find myself smiling."

a Call to experience

Seek out opportunities to be in the naturally brightest places you can at least part of the day. Not least at high noon. Even if not wildly bright, at least brighter than dimmer or muted places. Sense into the difference. Think of how much more plants and flowers thrive the more full, natural light they get. Take a leaf from their knowing book of life, and aliveness.

under the surface, the world is luminous

emil.blums@gmail.com (Your Body) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:56 GMT

Waterlight enchants us,

the fluent and translucent way it reveals

all that lives and moves in it.

Including our swimming, wading

or floating bodies, our glowing limbs.

listen while you read

Debajo de Mar en Calma

Under the Calm Sea

Underwater

lies a luminous world.

Where strands of light waver

through the green glassiness.

Where your skin softens and

glows. And all your limbs

move slowly as in a dream.

Below the surface,

tender currents caress

your body. Above, a warm

breath plays on your neck and

face, as you sweep half-open eyes

over the floating landscape.

~ in Mexico, on the Yucatán Coast ~

a thought

Like the light inside the water,

we can bring our sight deeper

than just to the surface,

and behold other kinds of beauty

awaiting us there.

a QUESTION

When have you been captivated by the waterlight? As an adult or as a child? What were the sensations, the emotions, that arose then, or thereafter? Or are stirred whenever you recall the experiences.
.

One member said

"I'm inspired to spend more time looking below..."

a call to experience

Take quiet time to notice, more than passingly, the light playing on and through the water, when next you encounter any. From the basin of a fountain, to a mountain stream, to a marsh or ocean tidal pool. Maybe your own bath. And if you're immersed, how your limbs or another's look, glow, under the surface.

follow the sunlit paths of living

emil.blums@gmail.com (Your Body) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:55 GMT

Every day, every moment

we can choose.

Lighter ways of being

in our bodies,

of stepping through the world.

Take the Light Path

The light of foot path.

The light of heart

and mind path.

A bright,

inviting,

life-dappled,

love-leafed

path.

A sole,

whole

soul path.

Sunlighted

by day,

moon-lanterned

by night.

Open to you.

Ready for you.

Calling you

there.

listen while you read

a thought

No need to be, stay, or hide, in the shadows.

a QUESTION

Where and why are you choosing to live in the light? Or leave any places of darkness, inner or other life darkness. And if you're hesitating, what encouragement or inspiration do you need to help you make your way? What support can you ask for, invite?

one member said

"It's hard to see your self in the dark

without turning on some light."

a call to experience

Shine the light of your mind on the light to dark ways you see your self or the world. Shine the light of your heart on the light-full to light-less ways you see others. Sit with what comes up in thought or feeling. Then imagine seeing your self and everyone you meet, as a quiet or rampant seeker, desirer, of lighterness.

our truest human-ness is always find-able

emiliobloom@gmail.com (Our Humanity) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:54 GMT

Light, turn up, feel, the flame of your humanity.

listen while you read

Our Humanity

What we belong to.

What we can point to

out there; around us.

And what a singular gift.

Our innate sentience.

Deeper humanness.

Shared with eight billion

other souls, and bodies.

What we can rise to,

in here; if and when

we choose to, or,

are moved to.

Summon the truer

and fuller humanity

that ~ whether clearly

or obscurely ~ resides,

so surely, within

each of us. Whether

it’s eager or reticent,

lost or longed for;

sleeping, or awakening.

I remember ceremonies

that began in the dark

of a church or a country field.

A first candle being lit,

from a source.

And from that first lighting,

to the other

held by the person beside.

Then each holder in turn

letting their flame light

the next, and next,

until all were aglow.

Until we soon

cascadingly formed

one immense body of light;

a bonfire of human-kindled kind.

Reflecting spirits; reflected in eyes.

Beaconing a remembering out.

Sending a hope-filled illumination out

into the Unseen and Unknown.

The same way the flame of

your humanity and mine,

instead of flickering alone,

can be lit, fed, combined,

and enlarged. Can join

the wicks, the rising spirits,

of all those who,

from where we stand,

we cannot see or know

but can feel, in the center

of our chests.

Enough to create

a great forest,

a great sea, family,

of uniting, igniting humanity.

A shared lightrise.

The greatest that people

of any time in history

or memory

have ever known.

A conscious joining,

generous emanating,

of human light,

benevolent light.

That brings wanted,

beyond-needed solace,

strength, and wordless

togetherness forth,

to soothe the heart

and smooth the future

of the trembling world.

a thought

The world needs your light.

a QUESTION

When have you deeply seen, experienced, felt or honored the light of humanity? Your own or another's pure humanity. Where are you bringing needed light to the world around you? The friends, neighborhood, workplace, or community around you.

One member said

"I never thought of entering a greater place of shared light before."

a Call to experience

In the coming days and nights, explore being a larger source of solace and compassion. And how to better see and offer yours to those whose spirits are in need of more kind light; those longing for some rays of ease, understanding, or possibility.

be a bearer & kindler of light

emiliobloom@gmail.com (Our Humanity) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:53 GMT

The light each of us can generate

is far greater than most of us realize.

"The Seven Sounds of Love" Chloe Goodchild thenakedvoice.com

listen while you read

Being of Light

Be a man,

a woman,

a child,

of light.

A bearer of light.

A kindler and keeper

of light, that beacons

in all directions;

sweeps over dark seas,

stony shores,

the faces of vessels,

of sailors, of known

and unknown voyagers.

a thought

We need to tend our own light,

so it stays strong, clear, well-lit.

Our heart light. Soul light.

At the same time, we can't forget

or neglect to send it out.

a QUESTION

In the dark, bewildering times and places people are trying to navigate, without foundering on the rocks. People you may know, and others in the world that you don't. And there are many. What beam can you put forth to help any of them? Who is or was such a welcome beam in your life, on your life journey?

one member said

"I would never have gotten this far

without other people helping

to light my way."

a call to experience

Glean more awarely into any small or larger beaconing you can do. Close in or farther away. From a kind word and a smile that lights up someone's day. To helping guide or mentor a rudderless young person eager to create a meaningful life. Or, if it's you in search of a guiding light, you might seek out a true elder to gain some wisdom from their life experience.

every day the Sun so generously graces us and the sky, sea & land

emiliobloom@gmail.com (Our Humanity) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:51 GMT

Let us bow to its endless bounty.

Spangled

on a Fourth of July

Far beyond the stars

on flags waving

from white poles

and draping

the country’s porches.

The bright glimmer

of the summer sun

on the noonday sea.

The glistening jewels

of clustered pebbles,

sea glass and stones

freshly washed and washed

along the shore.

The gleams

in the eyes

of the floating birds

and the children playing

so freely, joyfully

on the foot-soft sand.

listen as you read

a thought

Maybe we can find deeper gratitude,

for this gift of Nature.

That makes our life, growth and health possible.

And our world so beautiful.

a QUESTION

What if you brought a deeper appreciation to the simple yet elemental source that we depend on, The Great Illuminator.
.

one member said

"My way of praising the goodness of the Sun

is with a silent sunrise meditation."

a call to experience

Place yourself between dawn and dusk before a vista, a sweep or swathe or smaller patch or pocket of sun-graced Nature. Quietly stand or sit there for a while, seeing with an innocent eye how the light is received; what it brings to life, or beautifies.

we're all solar beings

emiliobloom@gmail.com (Our Humanity) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:51 GMT

No one on Earth can exist without the Sun.

listen while you read

Earth Man

Earthman.

Planetarian.

Wordling.

Humankindler.

Homeric sapien.

You.

We.

Solar beings.

Seeking,

drinking,

reflecting

light.

a thought

Our human nature, like all of Nature,

thrives in, on and with

the sun's light.

a QUESTION

How and where are you seeking the light? Literally. What about mentally, emotionally, spiritually? And from where you stand right now, where in the world and in what parts of humanity do you see it greatly shining?

One member said

"I stopped taking the Sun for granted."

a Call to experience

Start taking in the sun as if it's food and water for your being. Because it is. Drink it in as a tonic. Apply it as a balm. Close your eyes and picture yourself, feel yourself, filled to the brim with bright sunlight.

the bodies and spirits you meet that glow like paper lanterns

emiliobloom@gmail.com (Our Humanity) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:50 GMT

Witness the radiance of aliveness

in the faces and voices of people you know

or chance to encounter.

listen while you read

Live from the Under World

Below paved earth,

on platforms,

in carriages:

a man rioted

in stripes,

shirt, jacket, tie,

radiates

in all directions.

Another man,

sheathed in yellow silk,

soft yellow shoes,

ebony skin,

glows

like a paper lantern.

The arms

of a long-bearded man

are sleeved

in tattoos of eyes,

flowers, startled faces,

horned figures.

Among others,

in these light

and dark tunnels,

where the outer world

transits in many masks,

moods and costumes

through the City's

under world.

New York City,

Under~ground

a thought

If one person can gleam

through their body, their spirit,

it's possible for each of us to shine.

a QUESTION

When in your travels through life have you met naturally incandescent people? What ones are part of your life or work now? How do you feel around them? What do they evoke in you? And what is it that sets you alight, aglow, in visible ways?
.

One member said

"I'm figuring out how to turn up my flame."

a Call to experience

Seek out all beaconers of wellbeing. Bask in their company. Let their luster feed yours. And see what happens when you're greatly beaconing through your day, through the world. How it changes the molecules.

you're a spirit wrapped in a body lit from within

emiliobloom@gmail.com (Our Humanity) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:49 GMT

The French call it the elan vital,

the "vital spark." Our native vibrance,

transcendent radiance.

listen while you read

On the Eve

It begins on the eve

of Christmas Present,

wreathed with reveries

of Christmas Past

and wonderings about

those yet to come.

It begins many eves.

Under the eaves

of the house

of the self.

When I celebrate,

quietly,

this gift of life.

This expression

of spirit

wrapped in a body

lit from within;

that can light some part

of the surrounding world,

when darkness

falls upon it.

Or, can enlarge,

enrich,

its places of luminance.

When I see how I

and others

can bring kindling light,

welcome light,

reassuring light,

to even one

sputtering soul

in need.

On days, and eves,

like this.

a thought

Eight billion living sparks, vessels of light,

filling the world. Some so wild-brightly, others

embering and just in need of a bit of rekindling.

a QUESTION

When was the last time you saw that native vibrance of yours in the mirror?

Or in a photograph. Had a wow, that's me moment. Or were fascinated or captivated by someone else's.

one member said

"Incredible how much focus

we put on the care and feeding of our bodies

and how little we give to stoking our spirits."

a call to experience

Just as a fire needs oxygen to burn, your inner fire needs fuel to ignite, to blaze. Contemplate what best feeds it, stokes it, helps it burn better, and stronger. Then set about supplying that, and faithfully tending, appreciating ~ and celebrating ~ the bonfire within you.

let there be sparkling

emiliobloom@gmail.com (Our Humanity) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:47 GMT

Round the world, in its cultures,

its peoples, and all around your daily world,

there's pure sparkle to be found, felt, be uplifted by.

listen while you read

Let the Fireworks Begin

The star showers.

The wild flowerings.

The palm trees and peonies,

dahlias, chrysanthemums

of high-flying light.

The waterfalls

of sparks, colors.

The bright night-burnings

embering down

into dark.

The flashes

and shimmers

of earth-flung comets,

bracelets, diadems.

The rocketing arcs

you follow with wide-open eyes,

almost held-breath,

till you ohh and aah

from the outbursts

of silver and gold;

emerald, rose, rare blue.

Feel the ensuing booms

reverberate in your belly

as you lie face-to-sky

on a wide-spread blanket

easy and cozy with friends.

And savor all ~

amid the dangling spangles,

and wizzing, crackling,

whistling sounds ~

with innocent wonder.

Through the last fanfare:

the blazing, rousing finale,

the applause,

the drifting clouds

of smoke

and contented crowds.

~ on a July 4th in an old American town

a thought

Humanity, at its best,

is one of most dazzling displays

in the world.

a QUESTION

What does watching a show of fireworks evoke in you? Are the feelings the same as in your childhood? Who's full of sparkle in your life, in your circle of family or friends or fellow workers? Do you feel the same feelings when you're around them?

One member said

"I love being a sparkler."

a call to experience

What natural, beautiful sparkle can you find in yourself? And in others, from friends to family, shopkeepers to strangers. In a conversation with someone. Or in something you're watching, or reading, or listening to. Because the more of it you can discover, and embody, and ~ like a Roman Candle ~ shimmer out around you, the better.

your light is part of the world's light

emiliobloom@gmail.com (Our Humanity) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:46 GMT

And it matters.

Makes for a greater constellation.

listen while you read

A R O U N D T H E F I R E

Where the light dances

on a circle of faces.

Where the heat toddies

the spirits and all

close-gathered bodies.

Where, since epochs

and eras long before

Native Americans

honored the Four Winds

under new and full moons.

Before the Zoroastrians

lit the Great Fire at Yazda,

that glows on millennia later.

Before the Druids. Bedouins.

Even before Apollo

and Vulcan, Ogun, Fuji,

Agni and Grannus, Pele

and Mixcoatl.

When early man made fires

in the green-dark hearts

of forests, in the open mouths

of sheltering caves.

Where, across all human time,

voices, songs, music,

drumbeats and heartbeats rose,

with the sparks, cinders and smoke,

into the sky. Toward the sun by day,

toward the distant, listening stars

by night. Of lilting kinds. Offering,

celebrating, and other, anciently

sacred, wordful, and wordless kinds.

Where some of our own ancestors

once, surely, stood or sat. Meditated,

chanted ~ or danced with wild abandon;

naked or painted, or hatted-and-coated.

Till the last of the embers died out,

gave way. To the great silence

and stillness of the Earth around them,

of the vast and mysterious world

folded, and unfolding, around them.

Where we can gather. Go further in.

Invite and embrace our own kindling,

crackling…blazing. From the center

of our beings. Let forth our own fire.

To reach and touch, light, and warm

every circle of our lives; of our living;

of all our making,

all our loving.

a thought

Look how simply we can come into

what's humanly elemental,

universally personal and desirable.

a QUESTION

What circles of light can you create? Can you join? Can you find a greater sense of community, humanity in?

one member said

"Sitting around a fire, and fire-lit faces,

I feel so connected, and heartened."

a call to experience

Gather or enter an intimate circle of friends or good spirits around a fire, or a hearth. Or a candlelit dinner table. Share stories there, maybe some songs, or just being in the moment together.

appreciate all those who have illuminated our humanity

emiliobloom@gmail.com (Our Humanity) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:45 GMT

Whether well known. Or unknown.

Whether it's a friend. Or a stranger.

Revealing true humanity to you.

listen while you read

Samhain

on an All Hallow's Eve

The end of harvest time,

when Celts led their cattle

down from their summer pastures.

When sacred bonfires were set

immensely alight,

beneath the also burning stars,

to cleanse and protect.

A liminal time,

to cross, easily,

to the Otherworld ~

and make way for the spirits,

the fairies, the Aos Sí ,

to enter this one.

Bring their good fortune,

to farmers and crops,

livestock and lovers.

And receive in return

grateful offerings

of food and drink.

A hallowed time,

when departed souls re~

visited their earthly homes

seeking comfort.

Long gone kin

were beckoned and welcomed,

to places set for them at tables

of the living, whose faces

glowed in soft pools

of waxing candle-light.

When mumming and guising

surprised the openers

of neighboring doors,

and people in costume ~

or full disguise ~ recited verses

to the ready lookers

and listeners,

and left rewarded

with bits of sweet

and other treats.

And many played games

with apples and hazelnuts

in the first-frosted Autumn air.

And all, all marked the turn

toward solstice and winter;

found solace

in their deep rooted symbols,

their comforting rituals.

Embraced the arriving

dark half of the year ~

and their spoken

and silent passages

through these realms

of myth and mystery.

a thought

We can each be a model,

a living, shining example,

of deeper humanness.

a QUESTION

What rituals have you been part of. Or what gestures were made toward you. Or toward another. That showed you what it means to be more truly, deeply human. How did it affect you at the time, and afterward? Or long since, in how you've lived, or now are living, your life.

one member said

"That stranger long ago who went so far out

of their way one day to help me.

I'll never forget their selfless kindness."

a call to experience

Join an ancient or old, traditional or other beautiful ritual. Or create one. With others. A ceremony or celebration of some meaningful kind, connecting everyone present more consciously to their human roots. Kind and loving roots. Maybe also to their roots in Nature , and most importantly, to each other; to everyone's pure spirits. Maybe like Americans on Independence Day, or the Celts on Samhain, or people everywhere and joyfully on birthdays ...

Nature keeps giving us its radiance

thepoetisphere@gmail.com (Natural World) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:43 GMT

The brilliance of the heavens has inspired

men and women

since the beginning of time.

listen while you read

Where the Lunar Meets the Solar

on a Spring Equinox

Where the Equinox and New Moon pair,

square dance, within a day. Synchronize

their cycles, their oracles.

No wonder modern astrologers

and astronomers alike

begin their circles

at this point,

and call it zero degree Aries .

Where, unlike other days

of our lives, we will see

the constellated stars of the Fish

and Water Bearer

in the watery night sky.

As Pluto enters Aquarius,

since its last subtly powerful

entrance in 1777,

to subconscious applause.

What gates will open.

What radiance will happen.

What significance will it bring

to our consciousness;

to our masculine and feminine.

What light of our own will we bring

to this rare Cosmic Occasion.

a thought

The effects of Equinoxes and Solstices

are farther reaching than you may realize.

a QUESTION

How often have you taken in a Solstice or Equinox? Or an eclipse. What if you let yourself quietly ponder, and enter, more than passingly , the marvels and mysteries of each one, and other ancient-to-present cosmic events, other meaningful celestial happenings?

One member said

"I've started looking forward to the next heavenly happenings overhead."

a Call to experience

Make a promise to yourself to witness firsthand the next Solstice or Equinox, solar or lunar eclipse, wherever you are, while it's unfolding . Ideally some place outside, in or close to Nature. Alone or with others. Sense into the subtle energy of it, the mystery; the experience of balance, and the quality of the light, the subtle or dramatic difference of the whole atmosphere.

go where the light flows

thepoetisphere@gmail.com (Natural World) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:42 GMT

Let the Earth pour its living light into you.

listen while you read

Fuente de la Lluvia,

Fountain of Rain

Rain falls

from the rim of cool stone

into the painted blue and

yellow tiled fountain,

its glassy tiles submerged

and luminous in the glow

of underwater light.

The freshening sound of

rain falling

from the rim of cool stone,

like pure spring drops

plinking into puddles.

The soothing sound of rain

falling from the rim of

cool stone, on a languid

blue night dreaming

with stars.

~ on the Mayan Coast ~

a thought

The light of Nature, direct and reflected,

brings so much to life, through our eyes,

into our senses.

a QUESTION

When and where have you been enchanted, or moved in some way, by any kind of natural light, sun, moon, star or candle-light, flowing, glinting, glimmering?

One member said

"I'm intrigued how light can appear liquid or fluid, loose to dense, open and hidden, so many forms like these to discover."

a Call to experience

Pause often, at different moments, just to look around and observe what the light is up to, where and how it's moving or landing. Its clarity or opacity; its density; color, liquidity. And how it alters your awareness, or your senses...or sense of curiosity.

drink in the Moon's beams

thepoetisphere@gmail.com (Natural World) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:40 GMT

Let's be Moongazers. Moonbathers. Moonlovers.

listen while you read

Bathing

for the Autumn Moon

Bathing first

in the deep,

bone-hot water

of the Japanese

soaking tub.

Still sun-brown

limbs floating;

hands floating

like open flowers,

in the round,

white cistern

filled to the chin.

Then stepping out

into the breathing

night air, to bathe

in the cool light

of the Autumn moon,

and the showers

of meteors

raining down

in silver drops

from Orion’s

near brightest

star.

a thought

Waxing, full or waning, the moon,

la lune, la luna, endlessly enchants.

a QUESTION

Do you love the moon? Do you watch for it? Think about it. Seek out the moonlight. To sit or walk in. Solo, or arm-in-arm with a dear one, maybe a partner or a lover. Have you ever sung a moonlight serenade , or had someone sing one to you? What about a moonlit swim?

one member said

"Whenever a full moon's rising,

I take myself out to be with it."

a call to experience

Rising or floating in the night sky, in the company of the stars and other bright planets, the Moon patiently awaits your gaze. Anytime you can cast it. So step out, of a Moon-graced evening, to greet it, to bathe awhile in it; to commune or simply wonder beneath it, as countless others across time have done.

see how the sunlight suffuses, and saturates

thepoetisphere@gmail.com (Natural World) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:38 GMT

Notice the phenomenon and alchemies

of all vivid to lustrous kinds

happening around you.

listen while you read

The Enchanted Blue Pitcher

The enchanted blue pitcher

glows like a votive candle

in the sunlight that pours

from the kitchen window.

It sparkles at points with

sapphires around its arm,

neck and waist, as it

alchemizes white light

into watery blue air.

one Spring day

on Central Park West,

New York City

a thought

Natural to man-made, beautiful plays

and interplays of light are everywhere

in our everyday lives.

a QUESTION

Do you remember a distant or recent experience where some light was striking or washing or suffusing an object or a setting in a vivid way? Something you witnessed firsthand, maybe even quietly marveled at.

one member said

"When I really bring my attention to how all kinds of light color my world, it verges on magical."

a call to experience

As you go through a usual day, or somewhere on a trip, look with more open and innocent eyes at how the light changes things, animates, alchemizes or enchants them. Like faces in candlelight, an ocean or lake under the moon, your bedroom at sunrise, rainbows, fireworks. And yes, even a carwash ...

the light can transform, transmute everything it touches

thepoetisphere@gmail.com (Natural World) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:37 GMT

From the Sun's gilding and bleaching

to the Moon's silvering and whitening,

a constant, rampant, often

resplendent alchemizing.

listen while you read

A Soft Time to Walk

It's a soft time of day

to walk around the water,

a time when the ducks

are resting, their snow

white breasts like low clouds,

and the December light

transmutes the bricks

and stones of the buildings

to gold.

It's a soft time of day to walk

when the mild air is musky

with moist earth,

and lovely leaves have fallen

from the gowns of disrobing trees

that ring the Reservoir,

a bowl of blue lake

reflecting Autumn

under glass.

It's a soft time to walk

when all goes pink, even

the seashell-shape museum,

and the lamplights wink on

like a train of tethered fireflies,

and the sun sinks to rest

in a big, oblong bath

of cantaloupe-colored sky.

~ in Central Park, New York City ~

a thought

When the sun-or-moon-light is switched on,

everything changes.

a QUESTION

What are your experiences of transforming, alchemizing light? Maybe of a room, a garden, meadow, or mountaintop. A lake or seascape. The face of a building...or of a beloved.
.

one member said

"I love how everything in my humble living room

turns to gold in the Summer sunset."

a call to experience

Become an observer and engager of, an immerser in, the alchemies of the sun and moon wherever you live, work, travel. As a way to bring more magic and marveling into your daily life. Begin today, begin tonight...

with an innocent eye, take in all the brilliance

thepoetisphere@gmail.com (Natural World) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:35 GMT

Everything can be vivid.

From a place to a moment to a face.

All depending on how you look at it.

listen while you read

Winslow H.

for Winslow Homer

Winslow would have captured it

all. The last sun soaking

the bristled chests and tufted brows

of evergreen. The pure white wash

of light on the starboard side

of the anchored lobster boats.

The mauve and violet shadows

on the shingled surface. All

the watercolors of this ultramarine

world, refracted in the strokes

of his sable brush.

~ on the coast of Maine ~

a thought

You don't have to be a painter

to capture Nature's brilliance.

Just open to the undistracted artistry

of your own native seeing.

a QUESTION

Have you taken time to see into how great artists view and feel the world? Especially past masters, from the van Goghs to the Monets to the Homers. Have you taken time to reflect on how you have been taking in the world? Or how else you could.

one member said

"I'm slowly and happily bringing a more poetic

and painterly lens to each new experience."

a call to experience

Acquaint yourself with the work of some splendid artist or artists. One(s) you love, or feel drawn to. Because engaging with their art will reveal their unique and moving ways of seeing. And can open you to your own fresh and inspiring ways of perceiving, beholding, and being more fully and richly inside the world's beautiful brilliance, it's visual and multi-sensory resonance.

love the light

thepoetisphere@gmail.com (Natural World) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:34 GMT

Embrace it. Appreciate it. Revel in it.

listen while you read

Do You Love the Light

That gilds

the late-day lines

carrying conversations

along the road,

between the poles,

east to west, north to south.

That underscores

the undersides of gulls,

wings outspread,

as they sail

between the waves

and wide ocean clouds.

That bathes

the upturned faces

of shingled summer and

gabled autumn

houses grateful for

another rising morning.

The lovely,

love-worthy

light.

~ one August by the sea ~

a thought

It's a gift. It's all a gift.

a QUESTION

What if you thought of Nature's light as a friend. A wonderful friend. Always there for you, always showing up. Both a comfort and a delight.

one member said

"The light that fills my days

brings me joy and solace.

I can't imagine living without

an abundance of it."

a call to experience

Explore how many different ways you can love the light. Especially the natural light. But also the beautifully man-made.

Sun's up

thepoetisphere@gmail.com (Natural World) — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 00:18:33 GMT

When it's up outside, it's time to be up

inside everything else. Including you .

listen while you read

Carriers of Light

for the whales

They swam inside the collars

of stiff-shirted men,

the skirts and corsets

of well-contained ladies;

the silk folds

of tightly-rolled umbrellas.

Were worn round bodies,

and held over heads,

through rain, sun, seasons.

The bones

of mighty-to-behold creatures.

And all their sacred oil,

that flamed street lamps

for carriages and coachmen,

lit night lamps for readers,

for lovers,

fed ticking clocks

on tall mantles.

Essential fuel,

rare as the milk of Queens ,

spilled wantonly, unwantedly,

from the ancient rovers

of the oceans,

from unfathomably many

innocent carriers

of light, life; song.

a thought

The Sun is a dynamic star. So are you.

a QUESTION

How and where do you hold, or withhold, the light? Inside yourself. Or hold it for someone else? Or pass it round. Or dial it up. Way up.

one member said

"I want to be the same way I like my eggs:

sunnyside-up."

a call to experience

Let the felt fleetingness of your time on Earth move you to uncover all your light and lightness of being while you're here. Because how, and where, and how largely and freely you carry it, and let the light of others, people to animals, add to yours, is what makes each of our lives all the more visible. All the more vital. All the more possible.

everything is illuminated

thepoetisphere@gmail.com (Natural World) — Mon, 31 Jul 2023 09:07:00 GMT

Step outside. Feel into the air, the changing light,

the landscape before you.

listen while you read

Leave the Calendar Behind

on the Autumnal Equinox

Let the pages loose,

to fly off

in the first Autumn breeze.

Instead of reading

what day, month, season

of the year it is,

step outside, feel into

the air, the changing light,

the landscape before you,

around you.

Let them tell you

where things are.

Like the Equinox

now balancing in,

Balanchine-ing in,

as you attend.

Let your body pivot

naturally, and

your thoughts glide

gently, away

from fleeting Summer

toward fanfaring Fall.

Witness everything

cooling down,

everything spooling

out, in clear light,

in soon to come

pageant colors,

fragrant scents,

abundant textures.

Accept the invitation

to rise with, like ,

the Evening Star.

Take the offered hand

of Nature and

enter, together,

into its widely alive

and enlivening theatre.

a thought

The light of each season can season your being; your thoughts, your feelings.

a QUESTION

How conscious are you of the light? Especially the natural light.

Its qualities, effects, energies. And its changeabilities , at different times, places, weathers, and seasons. And around your varying states of being.

One member said

"I'm learning to see and appreciate how the light brings so much alive."

a Call to experience

Bring your awareness, or more of it, to the endless, wondrous plays of light,

large to small, around you today, and tomorrow, and the days and weeks ahead. From the sunlight to the moon-and-starlight, and all that receives, holds and reflects it.

poetic-sphere-testing

let all the light falling fill you today

Where else can you let the light in.

Feel All The Light Falling

a thought

The sun is the source of all life.

Yours included.

a QUESTION

One member said

"This gives a whole other meaning to being a Sun-worshipper."

a Call to experience

Earth's light shows

Sometimes the world around us is cinematic.

The Waters

a thought

We can be part, are part, of Nature's daily theatre.

a QUESTION

one member said

"I never connected my emotions with the light before."

a call to experience

let your inner Sun & Moon also illuminate your days

A Sun and Moon exist within you,

rise and shine beautifully, sometimes mysteriously,

﻿ in their own way, through you.

Sun & Moon

a thought

Radiance abounds. From the heavens

and from hearts, souls, faces, eyes.

a QUESTION

One member said

"I am a constellation."

a Call to experience

this is what you're made of

Open yourself to it all.

How Will You Begin

a thought

﻿

The light enters us in many ways.

Through our eyes, our skin, our spirit.

a QUESTION

One member said

"I'm learning how to glow more."

a Call to experience

think of all the light, now and from time past, filling the spaces you're in

How the light, like music, can hold, can evoke

many memories, reveries.

The Old Victrola

a thought

The light imprints itself both visibly

and invisibly.

And even after it has disappeared,

it has altered things.

a QUESTION

one member said

"I'm taking myself more mindfully

whenever I can, to places

where the light inspires good feelings."

a call to experience

those places of light that draw you to them

Everyone has a favorite setting

to savor the light in.

From gardens to forests,

park benches to sandy beaches.

Elysium

a thought

Certain luminous places

can offer us such comfort,

or refreshment, peace,

or feelings of freedom.

a QUESTION

one member said

"My garden, when it's blooming

with morning light, is my haven."

a call to experience

the joy of living in brightness

Living in a brighter reality

uplifts our days, our moments,

our faith in the world's well-being.

Mesimeri | Siesta

a thought

in their own way, through you.

latitudes & longitudes.
From Greece to Australia

Under the Calm Sea

of stepping through the world.