Sometimes a story washes over you, cleanses you, and leaves you open to new possibilities. The National Storytelling Festival started 46 years ago in the small town of Jonesborough, Tennessee. Today, on this annual festival in October, the small town explodes as thousands and thousands come to listen to some of the best performers in …Read More
Category: Poem
Poem: “The Box” by Victor Caroli
The Vietnam War drafted many young men, including Victor Caroli. While he did not end up in Vietnam, many of those he trained with in bootcamp did end up there. Many did not come back. Many came back injured. As he contemplated this war during his time in the military, he created this poem so …Read More
For Grief by John O’Donohue
For Grief —by John O’Donohue When you lose someone you love,Your life becomes strange,The ground beneath you becomes fragile,Your thoughts make your eyes unsure;And some dead echo drags your voice downWhere words have no confidenceYour heart has grown heavy with loss;And though this loss has wounded others too,No one knows what has been taken from …Read More
That Ragged Old Flag
Happy Fourth of July! On this Independence Day in America, we honor the flag as a symbol of the country and of freedom. “That Ragged Old Flag!” by Johnny Cash I walked through a county courthouse square. On a park bench an old man was sitting there. I said, “Your old Court House is kinda …Read More
“The Summer Day” by Mary Oliver
Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life? —Mary Oliver, excerpt from poem “The Summer Day” June 21, 2018, is the summer solstice in the Northern hemisphere. For us, it is the longest day of the year and the official start of summer. From today onward, the …Read More
Poem: David Whyte, Give Every Last Thing Away
THE BELL AND THE BLACKBIRD (excerpt) The sound of a bell still reverberating, or a blackbird calling from a corner of a field. Asking you to wake into this life or inviting you deeper to one that waits. Either way takes courage, either way wants you to be nothing but that self that is no …Read More
Prayer of St. Francis
Prayer of St. Francis Lord, make me an instrument of your peace, Where there is hatred, let me sow love; Where there is injury, pardon; Where there is doubt, faith; Where there is dispair, hope; Where there is darkness, light; Where there is sadness, joy; O Divine Master, Grant that I may not so much …Read More
Poem: “The Roar” by Kim Falone
The Roar ~ by Kim Falone He lies next to his wife A woman he half loves In a hotel room near an airport It could be any hotel near any airport He could be any man Who loves with half his heart Who shuffles like a shadow Who speaks in half truths And lives …Read More
“Song of the Banana Man” by Evan Jones
Touris, white man, wipin his face, Met me in Golden Grove market place. He looked at m’ol’ clothes brown wid stain , An soaked right through wid de Portlan rain, He cas his eye, turn up his nose, He says, ‘You’re a beggar man, I suppose?’ On a recent podcast interview with Dr. Paul Jones, …Read More
A Blessing “For Your Birthday” by John O’Donohue
Spring is the time for new growth, birthing new projects and new life. Here is a blessing “For Your Birthday” by John O’Donohue from To Bless the Space Between Us: A Book of Blessings. Let us remember the power to bless one another on the special milestones of life. For Your Birthday Blessed be the mind …Read More