the skeleton of
everything
dances in the wind
of revision
some days
my heart breaks four thousand times
and that’s all before
i open my eyes
heartache is the farmer of contentment
planting seeds he knows have little chance
of bearing fruit
if you want 40 plants you sow 68 seeds
and if you’re lucky you’ll end up with 50
think too much and you’ll always have just enough
but no one ever said happiness
was a permanent state
and no one ever said
survival was a given
we stand in a field of black soil
and cry when our feet get muddy
the rain will wash you clean
as long as you don’t run
and sometimes the sky has to cry
just the same way a mother
has to worry
have you ever tallied the scars
on the tree that shades
your bedroom?
missing limbs
broken branches, gashes
peeling bark
sap runs slowly through the veins
of existence
but every spring
green
new growth
insists on piercing the cloud
blocking your view
of the sun
and four thousand leaves
never seem
overwhelming
until tomorrow
when they’ll fuel the flame
you find impossible
to douse
.
.
.
.
Linking in over at dVersePoets for Open Link Night.
Join us!
.
.
.
.
June 24th, 2014 at 11:51 am
Absolutely wonderful read. Very inspiring.
June 24th, 2014 at 1:00 pm
but no one ever said happiness
was a permanent state… true… and it’s good to learn those lessons from nature… seldom that the plants make it unhurt through their life – yet they’re such a blessing even with their scars – and so are we…
June 24th, 2014 at 4:35 pm
happiness is often dependent on us…regardless of the situation…it becomes a choice…but yes, it is not promised, any more than survival….those were the lines that grabbed me in this…
June 24th, 2014 at 6:20 pm
fabulous – really fabulous. especially the first stanza … and the second … the whole thing was fabulous.
June 25th, 2014 at 2:43 pm
Really love this, just perfect.
June 28th, 2014 at 1:16 pm
WOW! There is a lot of life wisdom in this poem and it speaks straight to my heart – the title hooked me, and your opening lines……the seed wisdom, “no one ever said happiness was a permanent state”……just loved every line of this wonderful poem. What a great start to my morning! Thank you.
June 28th, 2014 at 1:32 pm
This is a great poem. We seem to both be dealing with loss, decay, absence and also the fact that everything continues on, new green growth is always there
June 28th, 2014 at 1:32 pm
but the green growth just gets in the way.
June 28th, 2014 at 1:34 pm
Ahh the advantage.. of the vegetation..never looking back to grow..never noticing the fellow seeds that fall away..to imagine the despair of what could be if the soil loses it’s fertility…
i’d rather be a Tree..
in
fact..
I’LL BE A TREE..
Truly with will..
that’s up to me…
Smiles and have a great Summer2..:)
June 28th, 2014 at 2:55 pm
Yes, it’s the acceptance of the uncertainty that is interesting here.. no entitlements indeed and worth believing it too!
June 28th, 2014 at 3:34 pm
Kelly, this is an absolutely STUNNING poem. Really enjoyed it. Yes, sometimes heartbreak does farm contentment & turn it all into nothing, when one thought one had all one wanted. And so true that a person has to always sow more than one expects to get in return. That is the way of life, I think. So often we are called upon to give a lot & must be happy if we get almost the same in return. Again, nice writing.
June 28th, 2014 at 3:44 pm
I agree neither happiness nor survival are given. We need to fight for them and never take them for granted.
June 28th, 2014 at 3:53 pm
I love the symbolic use of the tree & its 4 thousand leaves, wow ~ Beautifully written Kelly ~
June 28th, 2014 at 5:27 pm
A beautiful articulation of truth through natural reality. I loved this line.
” heartache is the farmer of contentment
planting seeds he knows have little chance
of bearing fruit.”
What I took away from it is, while nothing is assured, my contentment is the role I can nurture for myself, wholeheartedly, with a sense of assurance.
June 28th, 2014 at 6:19 pm
Real and telling depth here to luxuriate in here – my favourite of the night so far. So skilfully realised too – a delight to read… With Best Wishes Scott http://www.scotthastie.com
June 28th, 2014 at 6:52 pm
Happiness comes down to us, in most situations… or all… idk to be honest… I guess it’s because it’s much easier to entertain the negatives, than seek the brighter side aye?
June 28th, 2014 at 11:26 pm
Your poetry is growing in maturity and depth. There is an organic oneness in your work more and more. I always appreciated your work, but now more than ever.
June 29th, 2014 at 1:46 am
Standing on the black soil crying in the rain.. What a metaphor for the dilemma of life.. And planting those seeds.. I really love the poem.
June 29th, 2014 at 3:24 am
Happiness is indeed, transitory. The problem we have is that we fixate on making this emotion, this feeling, a permanent state. Once it goes, we make our state of mind worse by fighting against the loss. The truth is, we just have to go with it. Knowing and accepting that uncertainty is the only true permanent state – that’s the key. Not easy though! Very well done.
June 29th, 2014 at 3:24 am
It’s amazing the number of truly inspirational poems (like this one) that have popped up for this OLN
June 29th, 2014 at 4:19 am
what a title! and then, such a pen ~
June 29th, 2014 at 6:07 am
and sometimes the sky has to cry
just the same way a mother
has to worry…ever line is a gem because you bleed unto the page. I feel your heart and it is beautiful. I wish I could garden like you…one day.
June 29th, 2014 at 8:11 am
Absolutely lovely, very thoughtful. I like the wise calculation of numbers, the repetition of 4000 in particular. This stanza in particular grabbed my imagination:
the rain will wash you clean
as long as you don’t run
and sometimes the sky has to cry
just the same way a mother
has to worry
June 29th, 2014 at 8:49 am
nothing sadder than a glass half empty… strong emotions here
June 29th, 2014 at 12:35 pm
“think too much and you’ll always have just enough” … What a great line/bit of advice.
“we stand in a field of black soil
and cry when our feet get muddy” … Indeed.
“have you ever tallied the scars
on the tree that shades
your bedroom?” … Love this, and the final stanza.
June 29th, 2014 at 1:02 pm
The title is brilliant, a tiny poem in itself; your closing stanza is very strong & clear, and you have found some outstanding metaphors to describer man’s ongoing dilemma; as he is part of Nature, but too often stands apart from it, divorces it, ignores it. My grandfather used to say, “Happiness is just those few moments in life when you discover you are not in pain.”
June 30th, 2014 at 1:08 am
happiness – has it’s season as does everything else. A good poem of the earth