Tuesday, June 24, 2014

Fragile


A robin's nest by our entrance walkway
Grace @ Everyday Amazing


Above branches, a robin sits 
On nest of 
twigs
Balancing on slender bough
Swaying with wind & light rain
A single rock 
                       thrown
A single storm
                       brewing
Can hurl the nest on ground below

What kind of faith does the robin have
to sit calmly 
to build a home from twisted twigs
to wait for blue eggs to hatch patiently

I think of my sis-in-law in ICU of Los Angeles hospital
awaiting word on the progress of my brother
In the last week
her world has spun
from sure footing to one of 

                   uncertainty,


                   akin to sea waves rocking the boat


My brother didn't asked why fate has struck him
with a rare disease, why God is testing the mettle of his faith-

In a brief wakefulness, he requested 

for the gregorian chants & latin prayers to play in the room
His fingers tap to the beat, reassured
by his religion, now an unshakeable anchor,     
before slipping once more to the drugs tubing

                  his throat, lungs, veins hooked to machines 


                  murmuring a tide, calming as distant shoreline-
  
Over my kitchen window 
I spy the mother robin's body
protectively covering tiny eggs

                 The sky stirs her wings
                 & orange-painted chest 
                 in contentment
      
                 Where does her faith spring from 
                 
There is no fear in her brown eyes
There is no doubt
that her labor will bear fruits                   

                         

Posted for D'verse Poets Pub - Kindly say a prayer for the complete healing of my brother, Richard Friend ~  Thank you ~

39 comments:

  1. My thoughts are with your brother, Grace. It sounds as if he has a strong faith. Life sometimes has such a fragile balance. I will hope that healing will take place & your brother will be able to return home.

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  2. this was so beautiful. comparing the fragility of life between our species and those of our feathered friends as comparably equally valuable.

    i think about this constantly. faith is a constant of all life and not necessarily religious based.

    i wish your brother a safe haven in his soul. if he has any of your spiritual make up i believe he will ride the tide with great balance. tell your sis-in-law you are appreciative of her love.

    you have expressed your vision of the balance of things in this piece well, mi amiga. buena suerte :-)

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  3. sounds like he is protected and calm in that heavy storm... that is awesome grace... i hope he will recover soon ... and hugs and blessings for his fam as well

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  4. To find solace on the precipice .. we always seek it .. in faith .. in beauty .. the robin does it, and your brother does it.. my thoughts are with you in this process Grace.. I hope and believe all will be well for both the robin and your brother.

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  5. Oh, Grace, my thoughts are indeed with your brother and his family. It takes so little to make our lives spin out of control. I love the parallels in this poem, the cutting back from one scene to the other. Birds are such patient, brave creatures.

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  6. What a beautiful poem - exquisite in its comparisons - life coming, life threatened, life sheltered, all tenuous, all life magical, mysterious, meaningful. My prayers are with your brother and family.

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  7. So beautiful, the correlation between the calm trusting mother bird, and your brother's comfort in his faith. On the precipice, indeed, as Bjorn says - there is great courage there. I pray for your brother's complete healing, Grace. Thinking of you all.

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  8. Grace - sending prayers of healing, comfort and courage - may angels surround your brother, his wife & family and you. My brother has just recently come thru a devastating cancer and after stem cell transplant - we are claiming his healing - prayer holds us all in the hands of grace. K

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  9. Prayer chains are sprouting out here now like dandelions on a dewy morning, and white light will hover over blue eggs & brothers; your poem is dynamic, touching, concise, stirring, hopeful--yes, hope is the dove in a flock of crows, shining white amongst the dark feathers, winging straight to your brother.

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  10. I am so sorry to read of your brother, but pleased that he has a faith that is helping him through, giving him strength. How do we carry on, when tested, how does the robin just continue doing what she does? An unanswerable question, I think. You are in my thoughts, Grace.

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  11. smiles...if birds do not worry about what they eat, why do we? that is faith...and its hard in those moments when life seems so uncertain....you def have my prayers for your brother as well....

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  12. My thoughts and prayers with your brother and your family. I am so sorry, Grace.

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  13. good vibes + prayers your way, Grace. The descriptions of your brother's strength is inspiring; snapping of his fingers, not even asking, "why me?"... My thoughts are with him.

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  14. Grace, this is so emotive--how you used the metaphor of the robin's nest to express all that is going on in your family. Your brother is in my prayers.

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  15. Support comes your way, Grace. And I love the way you focus on the bird, doing what must be done. It is what we are here to do, isn't it? That which must be done.

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  16. Wonderful poem Grace and a lovely juxtaposition of your brother with the robin. I shall think and pray for your brothers recovery.

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  17. Beautifully done Grace! This is a real gem! An uncanny robin's trust and care juxtaposed with a real life faith and care situation. Pray be your brother will be well. Faith has a lot to do with recovery and he is in good hands. Good people are around him and that's therapeutic!

    Hank

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  18. Beautifully done--the bird and your brother. I hope all will be well for both. Perhaps the bird's faith comes from ignorance?

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  19. Birds sure just seem to know all their hard work will come to pass something good. Hope your brother gets well quick.

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  20. May God, who watches over us and the birds, bless your brother with renewed health and your family with peace.

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  21. How this moved me... deeply touching share.

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  22. I, too, send my prayers, Grace. The analogy of the bird is so useful I think...we see them sing right after a storm and they are dutiful parents...we are the odd creatures who analyze everything... maintaining our calm faith, as you do in your poem, is all we can do as we continue on..

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  23. This is beautiful and tender, Grace. I like the juxtaposition of your meditations about the robin and your thoughts about your brother.

    I pray for his recovery. God bless him and his family and you.

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  24. This is beautiful. Faith in life's storms is sometimes the most powerful faith of all

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  25. Oh. Perfect images of Faith. Perfect questions. Perfectly held back grief. I will hold you (plural) in my prayers.

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  26. Sorry to hear about your brother, but indeed faith and prayers can do wonders. There is power in prayers and when god is with us , we have nothing to fear.

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  27. I prey yes we all have some kind of fall in life where our hope is been tested thats what is happening to ur bro family....... Keep the faith things will fall in place

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  28. My prayers are with your brother's family...a grain of faith is our only shelter like the robin's...a beautiful poem Grace...

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  29. Very moving, with its evocation of grief and supplication to fate, with questions which will eventually be answered.

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  30. I like how you used the image of the calm and trusting robin in your poem and what you portrayed of your brother's faith. My thoughts and prayers are with him and your family, Grace.

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  31. You capture the fragility of life perfectly. My love and thoughts are with you, your brother and your family. xox

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  32. Beautifully written. I can see you at the kitchen window looking at the nest as these words spill through your mind making a beautiful connection to life.

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  33. You are right to wonder where the robin's faith springs from. We can all learn such a lesson from the birds can't we? Such a beautiful poem. My thoughts and prayers are with your brother.

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  34. This brought tears to my eyes. So moving and reflective. I like how you alternated with questions of faith using the robin...this is very effective.

    Sending good thoughts and prayers for you and your brother.

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  35. Grace - continuing to hold your brother and family up in prayer -K

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  36. I like how you illustrate how fragile and precious life is - what a gift it is by the illustrations - wishing the best for your brother.

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  37. Dear Grace, So sorry to read of this terrible news. (I think I saw some mention on email but didn't realize how serious it was.) This is a beautiful poem, and all you write of is so human and real--I wish all the best for him, and send a prayer for his strength and yours. K.

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  38. The juxtaposition of the robin and your brother is beautiful. "Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows." (Matt. 10:29)

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  39. Oh Grace, good thoughts to your brother and family ~

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