Growth
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Native Tongue
English is my second language. Poetry is my first. Do you want to understand me?Do you want to be understood?Engage me with symbol and simile,metaphor and ritual,evocation and allusion,the resonant, resounding play of syllables,the engaging, enriching arc of imagery. This… Continue reading
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The Vacuum
Nature abhors a vacuum. When, on the cross,the darkening blood of Jesusspilled from its tubing,vacated his veins and arteries,escaped like rain,though wood-grained channels,onto and into the thirsty earth,what abhorred that emptiness,rushed to fill it? We did. Text and image ©… Continue reading
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The Castle
St. Teresa,Avilan mystic,mystery see-er,observer of God's loftiest grandeurand tiniest marvels,explains that my soulstands as a vast castle,a many-roomed mansion,an extraordinary, multi-storied highrise,gilded and jeweled. Given that–in the marvelously graced mindof this, our outwardly simple sister–my soulholds the essence of my… Continue reading
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Greasing the Skids
"Grease the skids,"said his father. He had no ideawhat skids were,or where or how to grease them,or what relevance either grease or skids hadto his current problem. His father was proneto sudden, short and seemingly certain solutionsto any problem,all of… Continue reading
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On the Strip
Clearly,Vegas is not for me–at least not the Strip. I imaginethere's a meditative sideto Las Vegas. But here among the casinos,no one on the sidewalkhands out cards for retreat centers,just cards for call girlsand strip clubs. Snap, snap–they flick the… Continue reading
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Peepshow
Peepshow?Don't think so. It's difficult to finda quiet place for contemplationon the Las Vegas Strip. Entrepeneurial opportunity,perhaps? Text and image © 2012 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved. Continue reading
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Flotsam
Dis-identifyfrom your thoughts.You are not the things you think. Thoughts are your mind at work– often obsessed, often distracted, often distressed, often wrong. Your thoughts are not you;they are games your mind playsto amuse itself. Let… Continue reading
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Worth Celebrating
The fact that you exist–that you were createdand have lived life to this moment–is an astonishing grace,a miracle worth celebrating. Think of some way–this minute,this hour–to honor that amazing fact,to honor your amazing self. Text and image © 2012 by… Continue reading
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Credo
Sleep in the dark awarenessof God as God is–unknowable, waiting, ready. Here we find faith. Here we lose self. Here we become love. Text and image © 2012 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved. Continue reading
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The Forest
Lost in the forest,alone, afraid, abandoned,I fall to my knees,bury my face in my hands,and weep. When my tears have ended,when I have exhausted my grief,I open my eyes and look around:trees have gathered,forming a protective circle,arms joining above, sheltering… Continue reading