Angel Hope from the Armadillo

author's note:

"Beautiful" would seem to be a rather empty adjective...

On the other hand, sometimes we need to remind ourselves.
　


ANGEL HOPE FROM THE ARMADILLO

In that hard time...

when I happened upon

a beautiful armadillo on the lawn

the unexpected visit seemed blessed--

such gifts return me to the reality of hope:

meaningful coincidence can not be mere coincidence--

if messages exist, I must have an angel

if not out there, then in here

hidden somewhere under my shell...


© 2013, Michael R. Patton

Climbing, Upside-Down

author's note:

A few years ago, I had a dream of an upside-down American flag.

So I'm guessing I'm not alone in this act.


CLIMBING, UPSIDE-DOWN

I'm guessing most of you
have felt the feeling
of dangling...suspended

so maybe you can understand
why I was afraid to look
down--yet at the same time
buzzed with curiosity...

So, of course, I finally looked

down and down and so far down

and immediately decided
I was performing a feat
beyond belief

but only a wise man
can tolerate the sight of something beyond
what we believe this life to be
and my small heart was not yet ready
to be so strong.

So I let its loud voice win
and closed my eyes again.

With eyes shut
I can ignore what I know
and so, continue...

still, from time to time
I take some satisfaction
in realizing I can open

and I will open...I will--

not just so I can make
better safer progress
by seeing what I'm doing

but because such open courage
would heighten this death-defying act
into an action even grander--

so I will open...I will

when my fearful heart
finally surrenders and accepts
what my large wise heart
assures me to be true:

sometimes what seems to be
a highly unreasonable act
can become quite reasonable
when we consider the gains made
through its crazy incredible difficulty...

© 2013, Michael R. Patton
dreaming steps

Missteps of Perfection

author's note:

I suppose I could've just said: "I'm trying to see the myth steps of all my missteps".
　

MISSTEPS OF PERFECTION

Age comes with a gift
that sometimes seems
like a curse:
              to see...

so many scenes
of innocent crimes I’ve perpetrated
against myself:

I've tried to beg my own pardon
but still can't accept such imperfection--
as judge, I condemn that blindness.

So now, I seek reprieve
by trying to see
the perfect design behind
the mess of all my missteps:

ever so often, I've sensed that perfection--
my eyes may strain, but what I feel is real...

so...there must really be a design...

© 2013, Michael R. Patton
myth steps

Mumbling About Our Great Life

author's note:

I recently received this comment from 'beverly hills cosmetic dentist': "after reading this remarkable paragraph I am too cheerful to share this knowledge here with colleagues".

I hope you are not too cheerful to share this poem with colleagues.

　
MUMBLING ABOUT OUR GREAT LIFE

The key ingredient in alchemy
apparently, is time:

though this moment seems rather leaden
it may shine like gold in retrospect

but to my regret
time can also diminish...

what I thought to be monumental
can appear quite small
when considered from afar

--so where lies the reality?

All I can say for certain is...it all has such weight--

when I stop trying to judge
and allow myself to feel--to feel it all, all at once:
the present, the past--the future, even

what comes to me then
becomes much too much
for me to express...

the best I can do
is to mumble
to myself...to you
this assurance:

we are all living
something truly great...

© 2013, Michael R. Patton
searching for the new mythology