Looking in this mirror
I see myself as others see me.
Today
I will display a gentle smile
And caring eyes
Projecting inner peace.
Someday, perhaps
This small deception
May grow to represent
A true reflection.
A good first step in changing our lives for the better begins with forcing a smile and consciously trying to find opportunities to be helpful to others. Over time, we can begin to internalize these traits, leading to happier lives for ourselves and those around us.
I run
Not because I need the exercise
(Although, of course, I know I do)
I run instead to think of you
In solitude.
Too many times during the day
You pierce the turbulent surface of my consciousness
Rising nearly half out of the water sometimes.
Trying to gasp a breath of air, I guess
Or give me a breath, perhaps.
A breath I need and want, but cannot take.
I must put you down
I must push you back
Into that black realm of nothingness.
For duty’s silent siren calls me
Pulls me in a current I can barely tread.
For a solid gold anchor on a gossamer thread
I am drowning myself in a too-rough sea
Of much too much responsibility.
And then I run.
I run from all the troubles in my life
And dive into my inner self
And find you there
Waiting patiently
For me.
Holding you close one moment in time
We rise to the surface at last to find
It isn’t deep at all
Here
In the backwater solitude
Of my mind.
This is a poem I wrote about 20 years ago…before I knew anything about mindfulness. At the time, I was a wanna-be runner training for the New York City marathon. I tried many different things to help distract myself from the pain and drudgery of the run, including memorizing many poems, and writing a few…including this one. So, in a way, “Backwater Solitude” is an anti-mindful poem as it deals with the mental gymnastics that we all put ourselves through every day, instead of just enjoying the moment, whatever the moment is.
The incessant sounds of crickets
Surround me
On this otherwise quiet evening.
They spend their entire lives
Crying out for something they do not have:
Simple companionship.
Like these lonely insects
I spend most of my own too-short life
Dreaming of things I do not have
Wishing for things I do not need
When the mass of humanity would give anything
To have what I have
And too seldom appreciate:
My health
A wife who loves me
Children making their own way through life
Good friends
And leisure to spend these few simple moments
Listening to crickets
In the night.
This poem recognizes the simple truth that our near constant and insatiable desire for more and more material things only leads to our general unhappiness. We think that new car or new TV or latest cell phone will make us happy. But it doesn’t take long before the new gadget joins the long list of things we accumulate, and our yearning moves to the next great item we think we just have to have. True happiness comes not by acquiring more things, but rather from the relationships we build with others — our friends and family.
This gentle breeze presses against me
Comforting
Like a crisp cotton sheet
On a sultry Sunday morning.
It carries a familiar scent
From some other place
Some other time
Resurrecting memories long lost
Memories best forgotten.
But as for now
All there is
Is this breeze
And this scent
And the rustling of leaves
As it moves on.
This is one of my favorite poems. I like the little mystery of the memory triggered by the breeze-borne scent. At first, I try to lead the reader to think this might be a pleasant memory, perhaps of some long-lost love. But then, we find this memory is not so pleasant after all. Or maybe it’s a memory of some guilty pleasure that is best forgotten? The last stanza brings in the mindfulness message..reminding us that everything in life is transient, including even the memory of our life’s experience.
The snow falls oh so softly from this wintery sky
Each flake like almost nothing
And even less than nothing
Melting on my upturned face
And yet, in time, flake falls on flake
Building drifts nearly insurmountable.
Life, like this winter sky
Can sometimes seem so dark
So dreary
And a single act of kindness?
Insignificant.
But over time, kindness begets kindness
Changing lives.
Least of which my own.
May my life be forever like this gentle storm
Spreading joy with every flake that falls.
Abbreviated version for mindfulness repetition:
The snow falls oh so softly from this wintery sky.
May my life be forever like this gentle storm
Spreading joy with every flake that falls.
I awaken
And I smile to the new day
Nothing is more valuable than this day
I will find a way to spend it wisely
I will find a way to make a difference
To someone
Today
This day
I awaken
I smile
I am alive.
This is my all-time favorite mindfulness poem. I find myself reciting it each morning when I awaken, and believe it or not, it does make me smile. I can’t say I always find a way to to make a difference, but the intention is there on most days.
Walking alone
At night
I look up at the moon.
The moon looks down on me
Walking alone
At night.
A simple mindfulness poem: easy to remember, easy to recite. I walk our dog, Leo, every night as the last thing I do before retiring. When the moon is out, this little poem often comes to mind. I look up at the moon, smile, and appreciate the beauty of the evening. I think about how nice it is to have this orb to reflect some of the sun’s light on us during the night, making those evenings seem so peaceful.
I take a step.
I plant my feet firmly on the ground.
I push against the earth; the earth pushes against me.
I move forward; the earth moves back.
I take a step.
If there are any other Physics majors out there, you might recognize Newton’s 3rd Law of Motion highlighted in this short poem. We don’t often think about how we affect the world around us, but just about every action we take affects more than just ourselves. I often recite this mindful poem when I walk Leo, our family dog, and smile when I think of the Earth moving a little bit with every step I take.
Mindful 24/7 