Not because it’s Spring
does the body seek
that woman cloaked in shadow, her hair lining the hood
with the same silver
dawn uses to light the sky
and her hands stretched out
ready do dig
under the muscle ‘s loam
exploring vines of vein and artery. No, it’s more about
the art of healing,
planting and weeding whatever she must —
to make the patient mend. Slowly
she moves through the labyrinth of bone,
feeling the lament of limbs.
as they recall what came before.
Nights of movement when the moon appeared
maiden young; and evening invited
a walk along the lake, agility stressing
its own song beneath a chorus of bird and cricket,
the exhale of heather and pine.
Or more deeply felt, those moments of light
distilled into the bloodstream making
the act of waking an act of joy, an impulse to rise
and renew the body with work. Echoes of tenacity
already spun, glittering
along the garden hedge and a window sill
the forest once owned.
Neither goddess nor crone
(as you may have thought) she lives
and has lived in the sprawling vineyards
of our form since birth. Hidden. And on her breath —
the scent of everything green
as she leans over whispering — Body
beloved body
heal thyself..
Wendy – You have quite a body of poetry: you could fill a book with hours of sweet entertainment. You should put one together and self-publish . . . or find a publisher. I’m sure you could.
MSS
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“Nights of movement when the moon appeared
maiden young; and evening invited
a walk along the lake, agility stressing
its own song beneath a chorus of bird and cricket,
the exhale of heather and pine.”
Wendy,
I could live forever in those lines. That setting
approaches heaven for me.
Poems like this one are (to use your words) ‘an act of joy’.
Love it…in its entirety.
sarah
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Hi Mark
Thanks so much for reading and commenting on this poem — also appreciate the suggestion/encouragement about publishing a book of them. I am sort of going through a group of poems I want to put in a collection. Last two months have been a dry spell and much of it has been spent editing and revisiting recent and older poems that would be potential candidates for a book.
Hi Sarah
So glad you enjoyed the poem — it’s a new one that took a number of weeks to write and several drafts to finish due to a very absent muse and a literary drought — which we all as poets/writers go through.It did give me some time ,though, to revisit other/older works and refine them. Anyway, this poem is based on the idea of the will to heal and its motivation/power/determination personified in the character of a wise woman, a healer connected to nature, herbs, spiritual strength and light. I do believe the mind and body are paired in the healing process. But as the poem suggests in the opening lines, we must look within ourselves and find the will, the energetic force to mend our bodies as well as our spirit. Again many thanks for your kind words and support.
My Best to you both,
Wendy
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