Familiar

“The world around us is absolutely mind-blowingly amazing….All you have to do is pay attention. Then the stars come out and they dance with you.”–John Muir Laws

Common you say.  Everyday you say.
and it’s true:  night follows day
follows night.  Many things
form patterns, yet within
the patterns are mysterious
variations, expressions of one
particular momentary intersection
of space and time.  The moon
playing with clouds.  Water
coming in contact with light.
A tree, any tree, in any
season.  Who can forget
an insect’s wing?  Pigeons
swooping in unison between
the roofs of buildings.  Common.
And yet.  But still.  It stops
me.  Looking, listening, wondering.
Every day.

The NaPoWriMo prompt today has a link to an animation of the music of the Sun Ra Arkestra. Sun Ra was in tune with the world’s amazingness, but you don’t need psychedelic imagery to notice it.

Brendan at earthweal asks this week: What is the turning point that gets us out of this labyrinth of fated humanity? Who or what must we embrace? How do we find our way into the Totality?

We could start by just paying attention.

For NaPoWriMo this year I will mostly, if not entirely, be using art from the archives. I am in the pre-panic phase of my move–a little over 2 weeks before the movers come. I may not post every day, but I’ll do my best.

You can also see my art this month at the Ekphrastic Challenge at Wombwell Rainbow. Two other artists, and many wonderful poets, including Merril Smith and Jane Dougherty, are participating.

29 thoughts on “Familiar”

  2. ‘We could start by just paying attention’ is exactly right. There’s so much beauty all around us that we don’t notice, because we’re so obsessed with what we do not have. All the best with moving, and great to see your artwork in Paul Brookes ekphrastic challenge!

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      1. That’s good. I hope it works out for you. I am having to make the most of where I am right now. The rental shortage here is acute and what’s more, rents have gone up. Unbelievably the housing market is booming even though the pandemic is still happening.

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        1. Rents are still down here and there’s a lot available, but the sales market is tight–not that the prices are so high, but there’s no inventory because no one is selling. Too much uncertainty I think. I hope things open up for you soon.

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  7. Exactly to the point, Kerfe. A turning point surely is when we give our full attention and care to what is right in front of our eyes — our lived environment — and become a full participant in it. (Which is where your poems lingers so centrally.) Well done – Brendan

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