Wednesday, April 15, 2020

Safe Passage



A heron could teach me something about patience and waiting. Often she stands perfectly still for long periods of time at the edge of a wetland, stalking her prey. These days I am less than patient and often restless with the unknowns. The best medicine for me is to limit my news intake and go outdoors. Every morning I step out onto the deck and take a few deep breaths and remind myself of my good fortune. Sunday morning I stepped around the hail and mess of a storm that drastically changed the weather and offered Easter snow flurries. This week is cold and windy in Nebraska so I bundle up in my winter coat and warm woolens. I am glad I procrastinated with the washing prior to summer storage.

I finished Kate's shawl and will block it this week. I hope to make some progress on this sweater while the days are cool and a blob of wool still feels good in my lap. The shaping is interesting. A designer who can transform an idea into a pattern is a marvel. This photo shows the beginning of the A-line shaping of the body.




In her book, Finding Beauty in a Broken World, Terry Tempest Williams wrote about the tradition of a container for tears to honor grief. Several years ago, I wrote a group of poems about containers. I publish this one in honor of poetry month.


I Would Craft a Container*

I would craft a container to honor empty and full,
     dark and light, summer and winter:

A cradle for space between stitches,
     caesura between lines, windbreak in the grass

An envelope for words fragile as the tiny white
     feather lost in a prairie gale

A basket to shelter postcards carried by the wind
     or messages from earthworm and tiny dry leaf

An empty nest for gray sky and bright sunshine,
     a container for safe passage through ordinary days.

*copyright Jane A. Wolfe


As I link to Kat and the other Unravelers, I wish you a safe passage to ordinary days.




10 comments:

  1. Wishing you heron sightings, patience, good health, and containers for all that you want to carry. Thank you for sharing your extraordinary poem.

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  2. I am getting so much better at patience. Not something I was previously known for.

    There has been so much about this time that is out of my control. Some of it truly devastating (my FIL's situation). But as bad as it is, I can't change anything right now. Breathe in, breathe out and hope for the best.

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  3. That is so beautiful !!!!! Thank YOU

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  4. I love the Heron analogy... and yes, I could use some of that patience myself. We are getting "snappish" in my house these days.

    Your poem though is so wonderful! The images it brings are just perfect for today! Thank you!

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  5. What a beautiful poem Jane! You have such a way with words. Thank you for sharing with us.

    I like the color of yarn for your sweater - I loooked at the link and it is a very pretty pattern.

    As you know, I enjoy seeing herons on some of my walks. I love to see them fly low over the water - so graceful. And yes, full of patience as they stalk their prey. A lesson there.

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  6. That is a truly lovely poem, Jane. Thank you so much for sharing it with us. Patience is a limited commodity these days, and I think we could all learn a lot from the heron.

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  7. Oh, Jane! What a gift of a poem! Thanks so much for sharing your lovely poem. XO (And you are so right about the heron. Such a "role model" in patience.)

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  8. I love your poem immensely! thank you for sharing it with us - you are talented with words and capturing feelings I feel. I have limited patience and try my best to be more patient. It's not easy.

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  9. Lovely...

    Stay safe
    πŸ’›πŸŒΌπŸ’›πŸŒΌπŸ’›

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  10. Beautiful poem Jane. And the heron...I couldn't agree more. :-)

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