Dawn’s first light
Quietly overcomes the dark night landscape
Trees become black silhouettes
Against a gray backdrop
As secrets are illuminated.

The banyan tree outside my window
Gradually shows itself in the growing light
The branches come into focus
Then the leaves.
The basket of succulent plants which hang from a branch
And the peace lily that sits on the ground at its base.

In these quiet moments
Before the world is awakened
My soul is filled with hope
With contentment.

It is timeless, this dawn
Every morning it comes.
And renews my spirit,
My prayer for this world.

Troubles cease to exist for those few moments
Between the darkness and the daylight
My breath is slow and deep
My eyes watch the transformation
Love and gratitude fill my heart

Again.

By Deborah E. Dayen

PIcture taken by myself.

The air is still.
Not a leaf is moving in the canopy above me.
The heat wraps around me
Like a cozy blanket.

The geckos run to and fro
across the deck
Through the yard
Up and down the trees
With their roots splayed across the ground

Mockingbirds angrily scream
As one chases the other
Into a different tree.
Then, quiet returns
When the nest is safe.

Orange and black
Blue iridescence.
Fully morphed and freed
From their cocoons.

Summer morning in Florida.
Soon, the heat will be oppressive
And I’ll retreat indoors.
But for now
Even the heat seems luxurious.

By Deborah E. Dayen

A heavy wind is blowing in
From across the Gulf
Blowing past the barrier beaches
Flying across the bay

And up the street
Into my back yard.
The live oaks sway back and forth
The palm fronds bend as the breeze builds
The peace lilies dance in their clay pots
Their white flowers on the cusp of blooming

It’s a weighted wind
Carrying the moisture from the turquoise gulf
Laden with the fears and sorrows and prayers of so many
Across the land.
Blowing past the deserted beaches,
Streets and avenues, once full of life
Now standing empty

Silence surrounds us
Don’t want to watch the news
Don’t want to read it either
Nothing but bad news in the news.

How many more today?
I can’t listen to the answer.
When it’s over,
I’ll weep for everyone
Those who are gone
And those left behind

But today,
I’ll take the silence
I’ll listen to the wind talking as it flies by
Speaking of change coming
For all of us

I’ll sit in stillness
Asking no questions
Staying in the moment
where safety and peace
Sit with me.

By Deborah E. Dayen

Sometimes people are just difficult
Perhaps it’s a temporary life issue
Sometimes it’s a permanent way of being.

To criticize endlessly
to anger easily
To defend against a false but perceived attack

Isn’t it just as easy to be loving
And kind, and generous in thought?
Especially to someone you say you love?

No one is perfect
Not you, not me.
But love is.

So if it’s perfection you want
Go with love.
If it’s warmth and support you want
Go with love
If it’s a better world you seek
Go with love.

Always, go with love.
It will ease your fears
And take away your pain.

Go where the love is.
Go with love.
Just love, as a verb.
As a way of life.

By Deborah E. Dayen

Image from Google Images

It was cold tonight
The north wind blew
It’s icy breath down my neck
You walked in
Dressed for Boston winter in Florida
Long leather coat
Where were your boots?

The sight of you froze me
I zipped up my vest
And pulled it tight around me
Wondering why
The sight of you made me so cold.

There was a time
You’d have pulled me close
To warm me
I’d have believed it too
You performed like a champ for me
For awhile

Now I look to myself to warm up
I know there’s nothing
honest about your heat
It wasn’t real
You broke my heart
I’d rather be cold.

By Deborah E. Dayen

The bowls begin their circular journey
The gong rumbles low
A drum begins to play
The gong intensity deepens
The meditation has begun

The sounds become a journey
A walk through deep woods
Maybe traveling among the stars
Or floating on the high seas
Whales calling, waves crashing

Your mind will clear
You will follow your own unique path
Exulting in the beauty around you
Connections run deep
With the other sojourners nearby

The full moon rises
The gong crashes
The vibrations pushing you through to the next level
Fears and worries fade
Uncommon peace follows

The drum grounds you
With its steady vibration
The rainstick brings breathing space
Refreshing your soul
You relax into yourself.

The vibrations slowly subside
Breathing returns to your natural rhythm
The stars twinkle overhead
As you return from your unique journey
Perhaps forever changed.

By Deborah E. Dayen

Picture taken by me.

I loved him when he acted.
He was so convincing.
He kept it up day and night
for a long time.

But I guess he got weary
Of playing the part
All day, all night
And so he gave up the character.

I wish I’d known that he was acting
Not letting me in
Not letting himself out
I’d have tried not to fall in love.

Now, I miss him, at times
The actor with his funny lines
His tender touch.
But it’s all gone.

Funny how he thought
If I knew him,
I might not love him so
I guess he was right

Because the person I see now
Contradicts the one I loved
And so slowly
My heart stops longing

I just didn’t know.
I know now.
I wish him a happy life
Though I know he’s never happy.

It’s just a shame.

I wrap my robe around me
Not the new soft warm blue one.
The old white one.
Though there is chill in the night air
I couldn’t put on
The warm blue one.

It almost hurts to look at it.
To feel in its soft fabric
The love I craved
But was denied.

Why could you give me that?
But not the words
To bring us closer?
The simple words
Were all I asked.

I know the winters chill
Would blow right through
The soft blue robe
There is an emptiness inside
That can’t be filled
Except in my dreams.

I don’t dream anymore.

By Deborah E. Dayen

The thunder echoed
Across the darkened sky
I wondered,
Momentarily,
If you could hear it too.

Was the sky darkened for you
As it was for me?
Were the trees trembling
In the wind
As they were for me?

Did you feel the shift coming?
Did you welcome the change
In your soul of souls?
Or were you fearful
Of chasing away what you knew
To exchange it for something
You could not know,
But could not stop?

I hope you are safe
Enclosed in your solitary world
I hope you are happy
Without me,
Though secretly
I hope you shed a wistful tear
Occasionally
For what might have been

Before the thunder
Before the wind
Before the rain
Before the shift carried you
Away from me.

By Deborah E. Dayen

The sunrise paints the sky
With brilliant tones of fuscia and gold
And I am reminded
That there is always a new day
After the darkness of night.
There is always joy to be found
On the other side of those dark nights of loneliness.

Gratitude is the path,
The key.
From gratitude comes grace
In grace we are given the ability
To love
To share
To touch our own holiness
To forgive
To live out a life blessed

By Deborah E. Dayen