Wednesday, May 23, 2007

The Cathedral

I don't believe in organized religion,
but there is something amazing that happens everytime I walk into a cathedral.

The stained glass windows depicting events that go on today,
and a woman alone in her prayer praying in the exact same spot as a woman who prayed there 100 years ago. Maybe it's the same woman?

I find solace surrounded by the stone walls,
a kind of damp and dark feeling contrasts the sunlight which pierces through the images we should be paying more attention to.

The cathedral I visited today was an eclectic mix of different styles and periods across Europe from Gothic to Celtic to Renaissance.

Despite the beautiful images imprinted in my mind, what I remember most is the lone woman praying. There was no one else seated in any of the 100's of little wooden chairs laid out facing the center alter, only her. At first she kind of just sat there in thought, she was inside herself and inside whatever it was she saw before her. In what looked like a desperate plea, she finally leaned forward resting her arms on the chair before her and clasped her hands in prayer, letting her head rest on the clasp.

Walking by her you could feel the weight of her thoughts and her sadness...it's heavier than your own...all you can do is give her your prayer and walk on.

Saturday, May 19, 2007

ﺱ ﺈ

A tangoed spar, a dance in the light of darkness,
You reappear now only because I understand you better and am ready to face the reality of you,
I disappeared from you because I didn’t understand your hidden complexity, until it came up from behind and cloaked me, revealing a weakness that made me fall to the ground and beg from your escape from up above.
An act of grace or a show of magic, I lifted the cloak to find you gone, a simplicity unveiled to replace your complexity. A plastic tranquility, an ocean with no water. If ignorance is bliss, I chose to live in this bliss until its emptiness consumed me and what I tried to suppress resurfaced in the form of you again: the truth.
You peak your head around the corner as you know you’re being sought after, I can see you in the distance and know our paths will cross again. I am the light and you the darkness; I am the darkness and you the light. This time I will not fear you, for to fear you is to fear myself.

Wednesday, May 9, 2007

Haiku

Beautiful ocean,
Swept in by the undertow,
Looking for the light.