Category: Writings

I Am Like a Restrung Guitar

lindastudleyLeave a comment

Unwound, unwound, unwound
with lowering  moans and sighs the old dead strings
give up their place. A release
of tension. Freed from peg and anchor
they lie, silent on the floor.

New strings spring from enveloped coils;
leap out, eager to take their place,
to discover their voices.
Wound, wound, wound
with hopeful ascending trills
and the music is renewed
and renews.

It takes time and patience,
constantly re-tuning to reach the right notes,
but new strings are willing to stretch,
willing to take the tension
just so they can sing.

I am that guitar.
I have new strings.
Sing with me.

#55

Big Bang Bread

lindastudley5 Comments

There were only supposed to be twelve spiral arms
of cinnamon and raisins.
Then my doughy universe began
to expand, in a big bang boom it bloomed over
the top of the pan and the distance between
raisins increased exponentially,
like far-flung stars hurtling apart until
the heat overwhelmed the live, growing yeast
of creation and baked them into place.
And that is why, instead of a dozen
cinnamon rolls, we have an enormous,
if sparsely populated,
loaf of raisin bread.
Big Bang Bread.
It’s not a theory anymore.

#54

Velcro Toes

lindastudleyLeave a comment

Squirrels must have Velcro toes
the way they climb the trees.
And the way they climb back down,
nose first, is a mystery to me.
They jump full speed from branch to branch
with a chattering Tarzan yell.
And they just moved into my attic, sigh…
Damn their furry little butts to ….
#53

Human Nature

lindastudleyLeave a comment

We either imitate nature or
insulate ourselves from her.
We live in warm caves with potted plants
and wood panelling on the walls.
We fence our yards to keep out wild animals
and share our homes with the descendants of
wolves and lions.
All of us nicely domesticated.
We tell our children stories of clever mice
who wear clothes and can speak
and then we bait the mouse traps.
You can take the human out of nature but
you can’t take nature out of the human.
 

#52

Truth and the World

lindastudleyLeave a comment

Listen and the world
will whisper truth in your ear.
Truth sings in our hearts.

Observe and the world
will show you truth in small things.
Truth walks along side.

Breathe in and the world
exhales truth in every breeze.
Truth perfumes the air.

Swallow and the world
will fill you with truth’s sweetness.
Truth will sustain you.

Reach out and the world
will stand still and wait for you.
Truth will touch you back.

 

#46