Albuquerque
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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
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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
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My Yappy Dog (My Ego)
My yappy dog (my ego)kept me up last nightbarking at imagined invaders."Hush!" I'd say.It made no difference;he was certain intruders had breached our defensesand we were doomed. I even got upto lead him through the houseand show him that all was… Continue reading
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All Steps on the Path
When you realize you've stopped paying attention,you are paying attention. When you recognize you're not here,you are here. When you become aware that you're living outside of now,you've returned to now. These are steps on the path called mindfulness,on the… Continue reading
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Blink
Aging,we realize that we are any given agefor only a moment. So quickly it passes–all passes. At this end of the journeywe become observers(like God,outside the stream of time,watching time's flightlike a single turning of the clock): a… Continue reading
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Forgiveness
Want to reduce stress? lower blood pressure? release anger? relieve depression?Want to feel more optimistic? hopeful? compassionate? physically energized? All will be yoursif you forgive. You're the one who suffersif you do not. We… Continue reading
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God’s Lap
Oh, to curl in God's lapthe way my cat curls in mine,to feel a strong hand steadying my side,to feel breath rise and falldeeper, slower than mine. Oh, to trust so completely.Oh, to so melt. And when God gets up to… Continue reading
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Meeting the Self on a Dark, October Night
I met my selfwhile walking home last nightalong a dark, October road,lined with leafless trees,swept by a coarse wind,smelling of approaching snow. I met my selfand knew he was but a ghost,a resonance of past illusion,an echo of concepts and… Continue reading
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The Point
Jesus never asked anyoneto be orthodox,but he repeatedly asked everyoneto serve, help and heal. Why our obsessionwith creed and confessionwhen Jesus, our brother,says, "Love one another"? Text and image © 2013 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved. Continue reading