Things To Do When Taking Tea (WC)

 

(Wendy Cabell, published in Writers At Play Presents: Our Legacy, edited by Daisy Barrett-Nash, Equal Arts, 2022. From September 22, 2021, Autumn Equinox, second day of Sukkot, feast day of  The Hearer Icon of the Mother of God, of (above) Saint Gunthildis, and of Saint Basilia. Image from here.)

Things To Do When Taking Tea

Only in the awareness of the present, 

can your hands feel the pleasant warmth of the cup.

Only in the present, can you savor...-Thich Nhat Hanh

1. Know that Mother’s milk takes many forms. 

2. Turn over your leaf, herb of choice

3. Place in your empty vessel. 

4. See water’s catch of Light as bring to boil.

5. Pour over 

       your herb,

         to soften, 

             let flow

               its juice.

 

       6. Fill cup. Drink this, 

             and only this, in

this moment. 

*From prompt of crafting an advice poem: choosing a favorite activity/lesson, choosing six verbs and heading a sentence/point with each one, noting what lines stand out and fine-tuning for deeper sensory detail and use of metaphor/similie. From Daisy Barrett-Nash's Legacy Poetry, September 15 and 22, 2021.

Flying Lessons (WC)

(Wendy Cabell, published in Writers At Play Presents: Our Legacy, edited by Daisy Barrett-Nash, Equal Arts, 2022. From September 8, 2021, feast day of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and also of the Kursk-Root Icon of the Mother of God (and other Icons). Also the second day of Rosh Hashanah, the "head of the year" (first day here); as well as commemorating the (3760 BC) first very Shabbat on the seventh day of creation. Image from here.)

Flying Lessons

Above all, clothe yourselves with love,

which binds everything together in perfect harmony...

and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms,

hymns, and spiritual songs to God.

-from Colossians 3: 14,16

 

The Wing’s the thing: the unspoken 

mantra of my Mother. Though spoken too.

“Okay, Baby Angels, we need a mini-miracle.”

Survival 101.

“Let your Guardian Angel

talk to his Guardian Angel.”

Conflict resolution.

“If you ever see a frown,

do not let it stay.” Or rather,

“If after wings, 

your blessings sing.” 

Cognitive therapy,

as to this restless

soul a feather's brush. Her hand 

on my forehead. Slow dawn 

of soft smile,

knowing,

“Angels can fly because they take themselves

lightly.” Aka transcendence (meanwhile naming 

daughter after Disney,

“You can fly!

You can fly!

You can fly!

There it is, Wendy,

second star to the right

and straight on

'till morning!"

But digressing.) 

And remembering, 

night not so long ago, on bed resting,

legs cycling in air. Phone nestled by ear. True

confessions. Mom’s climb out of depression just

noticing the littlest of things. Magic's glow

tween “thank” and “you", got her through. 

“So now I’m telling you,” 

floats her voice,

"If after wings,

your blessings sing.

The Wing's the thing."

               

*”If you ever see a frown…” is paraphrased from Daniel Taylor’s Smiles .“Angels can fly because…” is quoted from G.K. Chesterson’s Orthodoxy. “You can fly!...” is quoted from Walt Disney’s Peter Pan.

**From prompt: Ponder the life lesson(s) that have meant the most to you. Freewrite about the setting where learned them, the person learned them through and his/her characteristics, the way the lesson(s) were imparted, the impact the lesson(s) have had upon you. Underline striking lines, bring in more sensory detail, and notice if a theme word or line emerges to repeat. Weave in a couple lines further zeroing in on the (or a) "moment" this lesson came through, perhaps using syesthesia. Then craft the above into a poem. From Daisy Barrett-Nash’s Legacy Poetry, July 28, August 4, and September 1, 2021; revisited and revised September 8, 2021 class.