Heather Pound

this is my humble apology

to all of the words that i didn’t deem

‘just right’ to remain upon the page

 

that i heartlessly and callously

swept aside, deleted.

 

it wasn’t that you weren’t good enough,

that your shape and form and personality

didn’t please.

 

it was more about the general timing of

our meeting and location upon the page.

 

so, with that said, please know that honestly

it’s not you,

it’s me, really

 

and i genuinely hope

that we can still be

friends.

 

Heather Pound 2024

Photo by Glen Carrie on Unsplash

let us gather up close all that we have

and hold dear

 

and let us handle this, these priceless

and remarkable things with sober care,

thankful

 

meanwhile let us also be open

to the fresh and clean and new

 

that blank space

that empty page

that song yet unsung

 

to not be limited by what is past

or by what failures we deem

ourselves rightfully charged,

callously laid with trembling

hands upon our own doorstep,

cruel

 

instead let us breathe in the gift

of grace

 

and observe the hopeful glimmer

of early morning mist.

the sun as she stretches and yawns

and says, ‘this is another day, new’

 

let us be brave and eagerly

take a hold of all that glitters

with promise

 

and become the magpie,

collecting the shine

of our very own trove

of treasure, glittering

with hope and

possibility

 

Heather Pound 2024

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

yesterday, while sitting

by the sea, a man ran down

to shore, urgently gesticulating and

waving for his children to come back in.

 

his caution spread and soon we saw

the fin as well, coming quickly up

and down not too close, but perhaps

not far enough for comfort.

 

and it took a bit more time

until we all could see

that instead of triangled,

the fin was curved

 

and rather than caution extreme,

delight ensued instead

 

and then we saw two. a mother

and a calf cavorted in the lazy

afternoon sun.

 

and as we strolled away

after a time,

 

i wondered how much of life

is spent assuming a shark,

when only a dolphin is there

instead.

 

Heather Pound 2023

Photo by Chris Galbraith on Unsplash

how did one small babe

fresh and soft and new

 

born in hope

swaddled in calm

alive in love

 

make the heavens

and angels sing

and hearts rejoice

down through the

ages?

 

he, the conduit

of peace, the marker

of how God himself

considers of all of us.

 

this is grace

upon grace

 

and my wish for you

is that your soul

will feel its value

this day and

every day,

 

and that you will

never ever doubt

your worth again.

Heather Pound 2023

Photo by Mike Labrum on Unsplash

do you feel like you’re in the waiting?

hands outstretched but feet firmly

planted?

 

heart thirsty for more, impatient,

you wrestle with soft restraints

and yet they chafe.

 

and every day you wake with

expectation only to encounter

‘stuck’ once again.

 

this pause forced, it does not

of failure speak.

 

do you remember the bear

hibernating in den,

caterpillar cocooned,

bird resting upon nest?

 

it is nine long months before

a woman gives birth.

 

it may go against our grain

in this fast paced place where

we dwell,

 

but there is always

a season that waits.

 

and, when we lash against that

which withholds, we only create

more pain.

 

the waiting may be undesirable,

unwanted

 

but there is always a reason

for this.

 

Heather Pound 2023

Photo by Артём Мякинник on Unsplash

sometimes

when triggers come

or tension builds,

because something

in the now touches

upon sharp things

past

 

do not just disregard,

distract, ignore.

allow even this

feeling difficult

to be respected,

embraced

 

because being

allowed to breathe

is freeing and

acknowledging the

emotion is a huge

step forward towards

the healing.

 

and if the feeling,

the sensation will

not deep breath

calm, then allow

it to be recognized,

intensified even

 

but then–let it pass.

allow it to radiate,

dissipate,

expel

 

flowing out through

your limbs, appendages

and even your pores,

 

from every location that

it would like to escape

until the tension

is gone.

 

and each time this happens,

every uncomfortable space,

you are that much closer

to being exquisitly 

restored.

 

–there is always, always hope.

 

Heather Pound 2023

Photo by Matt Perkins on Unsplash

if you give from what you have

whether it be a little or a lot

yet from afar,

you are generous

 

and that in itself

is no small thing

 

but if you create a soft place,

a safe space for others

to come

and experience

right alongside,

 

offering what you have

not only in gifts

but in your presence,

 

then this is the heart,

the art

the understanding

of what it really

means to share.

 

—sharing is not done at a distance, it is up close and personal.

 

Heather Pound 2023

Photo by Patrick Tomasso on Unsplash

she caught my attention

as i drove past,

ginger curls flowing

incandescent in sun

 

at the top of a middling

sized tree, she not only perched

but bounced and shook

 

arms back and forth,

feet rebounding with all

that a small frame

could muster,

 

while three young boys

of similar stature

waited to scoop up

fruit that fell below

 

and i wondered who nominated

her to climb, but then reframed

that a girl such as her would

not wait

 

no, she was the mastermind

as well as the executor, and

the lads were simply along

for the ride on adventures

of her design

 

and that the luminescence

in her halo of hair

might not actually be from sun,

but from light that radiated

fierce within

 

and although a week or more

has passed, i still see her

fearless and free

on top of that tree

 

and smile

 

 

Heather Pound 2023

Photo by Vesela Vaclavik on Unsplash

you feel ground up,

crushed, only a

fragment of

what you were.

 

and let’s be honest,

the process

has been painful.

 

but let me hearten you

with this.

 

of crushed up rock is

metal made, and

metal is vital

in the formation

of concrete.

 

so, instead of a life

smashed apart,

broken beyond

repair,

 

you have been

building the elements

of a solid foundation.

 

it will take some

time, and you may

need to be further

mixed, processed,

 

and you will require

time to set

 

but what you will

have in the end

will weather

any storm. 

 

(for my N. American friends, ‘metal’ is gravel.)

–inspired by the words of Paul de Jong

Heather Pound 2023

Photo by Graphic Node on Unsplash

it’s more difficult to fold your hands

in apathy than to do even

a small amount from day to day.

 

while rest is of value,

do not sit so long that

the weeds, they sprout

and grow

 

causing a bigger mess,

producing much more hassle

than the one you thought

to avoid.

 

vines grow willy-nilly,

dust invades every nook

and crevice, vermin

multiply fast, rust

corrodes.

 

 

this is infinitely more costly

in the end than to simply

embrace the manageable

and steady from day to day.

 

instead, protect yourself

from indifference that

births regret painful

 

and consumes your peace

as well.

 

apathy is not a neutral

place, no matter how hard

it masquerades.

 

Heather Pound 2023

Photo by Jack Sharp on Unsplash