The 60-Second Sabbath

Growth

  • Ristra

    These fresh peppers–fire-engine red and leather-supple,all youth and loudness–gather,jostling and laughing,enjoying the attention. They age,color mellowing to burgundy,skin stiffening. Relaxed now, they fall silent,awed by the heat building within,ready to release the firefor which they were bred. Young peppers flash;old… Continue reading

  • Ego? Egad!

    I. My egoneeds less stage-time.He needs a caring cast memberto escort him into the wings,assuring him that he's doing a fine joband can now take a break,have a smoke and chill.The play goes on;we will retrieve him if needed. Sadly,… Continue reading

  • Existence/Experience

    When my father died,I looked through his vast library,and ran my fingers over the polished surfacesof the furniture he had built,and asked,"What was the point?" Then, when my mother died,I looked at her wall of needlepoint,and thumbed through her boxesof… Continue reading

  • Whiteboard

    Picture your lifeas a whiteboardon which is writtenall you've been toldabout life and meaning–    all you should believe,    all you should do,    all you should be. Thus crammed witha lifetime of scribbling,the board is unreadable,a jumble of… Continue reading

  • Self-Compassion

    I recommenda lot less self-critiqueand much more self-compassion. We're far too quick to bash ourselves–or feel like crap when others bash us–but seldom respondby honestly acknowledgingthat these things hurt,and what we really needis understanding and comfort. "Yes, that hurt.What she… Continue reading

  • Gift

    You can give me    no greater giftthan helping me seek    my own truth. Text and image © 2013 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved. Continue reading

  • Impermanence

    Even the finest things,those we treasure most,are meant to fray, unravel and pass away:     my grandmother's hand-stitched coverlet,    the scarf I knitted for my mother in third grade,    my father's favorite flannel shirt,     friendships, … Continue reading

  • The Journey

    The unnamed destinationyou long formay, in fact,be the step you're taking now.  Text and image © 2013 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved. Continue reading

  • Revelation

    A whirlwindthrowing light,God spins by,erasing the lineI'd carefully drawnbetween sacred and secular. Laughing, God calls back,"Haven't you heard?I am the anti-boundary!" Text and image © 2013 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved. Continue reading

  • Imagined Invaders

    Ego is a fine servantbut a dangerous master. Observe it–    a yappy dog    barking at imagined invaders–but do not make ityour identity. Never take ego(yours or mine)seriously. Text and image © 2013 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved. Continue reading