Patience in the Forest

December 13, 2020

Today we walked in our beloved Peace Sanctuary on some trails we’ve only used a few times, and it was fun to follow fresh paths through this old and stately forest. I wasn’t exactly sure where each path led, but I knew a little patience would work, so I ‘let go’ and let the woods show me the way. (Delycia was more sure of where each path was leading, which helped me stay patient and purposeful.)

On the walk, we passed some trees that have obviously been incredibly patient over decades of years (see below). The sprouts of these trees somehow slowly and persistently pushed out from enormous boulders, and, over many years, resolutely rose up the side of the rocks, somehow finding nourishment while surrounded by small stone mountains. They obviously didn’t rush – because they couldn’t. The only way was to work inch by inch, day by day, year by year, and now, here they are, solid and strong – and still going. Perhaps, in the coming years, I can be as patient as these dogged, determined trees.  

 
PATIENCE
 
The computer keys 
rose and fell
and a few words
appeared on the screen,
working quietly
to become a poem.
Peaceful efforts
were being made
by forests on hillsides,
and families were waking
and working patiently
to push open
the doors of their lives.
He sat still
and let his lungs 
quietly lift and fall
as the earth
worked its easy
and systematic way
through space
and a poem 
uncomplainingly composed itself
on the screen.