author / speaker / hope-filled poet
slow. slowdown that part of you that
always waits for the next moment
and the next.
breathe in the air of sea,
feel the sand beneath your feet,
the sun on skin, the sound of
waves and wind.
and let those thoughts
that belong to tomorrow
blow away on the breeze.
you will have much more
strength for them then
if you embrace the peace
that is at hand today.
Heather Pound 2023
how can i explain to you
the dizzying disorientation
that I feel
as we sit here in the present
talking about a topic that is
well and good
but for me it triggers and
takes me out of today into
time past
and my body, while perfectly
safe right now, remembers
a story different.
and even as my lips move
i am breathing in deep and
slow
reminding myself that i am
here and now and that i
am secure.
i feel the fabric of the sofa
beneath my fingers and i
scan the room.
even though this sounds
unpleasant, and it is, i have
dealt with this long.
and while this would have
sent me reeling in the past,
feeling like my
body itself betrayed and would
send me to my bed shivering
for the day,
i am now more swiftly aware,
more armed with the thoughts
that will remind me
that my body is my friend and
i appreciate its attempts to
protect
and whisper to it my thanks but its
vigilance in this moment is not
required
and most of the time this relationship
with ptsd goes unnoticed now by
everyone but me.
–when you have been strong through trauma and/or difficult circumstances for far too long without the opportunity to recover so your nervous system begins to slip too easily into fight, flight or freeze very much overreacting in the present moment, you may develop ptsd. if this is not you, please understand that for some that this is a very real issue and that just getting on with it is not an option. they need space, time and support to heal. if this is you, please know that there is support out there and that the out-of-control-ness that you feel now, does not mean it will be that way forever.
Heather Pound 2023
Photo by Johannes Plenio on Unsplash
i am certain my cat
can read my mind
because as soon as
i think the thought
that i must get up
from chair, into my
lap she climbs
saying, “wait a little
longer, tarry. do
not rush into your
day. stay right here
with me, commune
in peace.”
and often, if my
schedule permits,
i listen to her wisdom
ancient for a time.
Heather Pound 2023
Photo by Green_Katsuto on Unsplash
i thought that i had forgiven you
many trips around the sun ago,
but today i discovered a niggle,
a little pest folded within a thought.
because wherever you are in this
moment, i cannot wish you well
without a pause and a clench in
my teeth through a smile.
surprised by this notion disingenuous,
i pause.
and discover that the wounds written
with your name once again need
a bit of gardening.
i am so deeply tired of this process
so truly disappointed that i must
once again think of you and prick
the sore so it can breathe.
i want to be done with this
but know the only way i can
truly be free, is to minister to
this pain, this anger once again.
even though i will never forget,
the ripples are too wide and lasting,
i can let go, choose to forgive
as many times as required
until my heart is at peace.
Heather Pound 2023
while the storm may roar around
it does not need to rage within
because you, cognizant creation,
have the ability sift through the
damage being done, evaluate,
shore up and reach out to all
you know that will bring
you peace,
intentional.
so, take the time and space
to see, to act. you do not
have to just endure
the tempest.
Heather Pound 2023
i cannot begin to fathom
why i was born me
and you were born you,
my sister in humanity as
we ride beside each other
on transport public
in your own country.
i did nothing to earn
my seemingly privileged
position, not wealthy in
my own land but incredibly
so in yours. yet who is to say
that you are not privileged in
matters of consequence greater.
i do not know your life, your story,
and you do not know mine.
so, right now we will sit here quiet
and gift each other with met eyes
and occasional soft smiles as we ride.
because even though we live
worlds apart we are both human,
both women, this,
our universal bond
regardless of the rest.
Heather Pound 2023
Photo by engin akyurt on Unsplash
that thing that tries to stifle,
control, to frankly ruin your life,
i will tell you this in truth
–it lies.
this habit that used to help
you manage, numb or
somehow grasp control
is no longer serving you
at all,
and you have suspected for
quite some time that you
are presently subservient
to it–instead.
addiction is a monstrous
taskmaster and if you do not
confront its favorite weapon
‘denial’ and throw heart and
soul into facing
your giant bold,
that hurt, that experience
the ogre that started
the pattern that you
were always desperately
trying to escape from,
then addiction will
likely win.
and i for one, would
weep if this the case
becomes, for i have
seen this devastation
up close, to the person
–and to everyone they love.
but i firmly believe you possess
intrinsic tools that support. and
a source of strength supreme
that has been submerged,
forgotten, but is waiting
to rise to the service to
enable you for such a
time as this.
and now is the time to rail
against all that which
lies, take your stand,
and begin the fight of
your life.
because that is exactly
what is at stake,
the battle to take back
the rest of your days.
and do not be discouraged
if the path forward is one
that zigs and zags. as you keep
your goal of freedom in
sight on the horizon,
the zigs will lesson and
the zags will only correct
your path but a little bit.
and i believe that you
can do this
and that your life will ring
bright and full and joyful
with the sound of healing
and freedom.
—if you or anyone you care about is fighting addiction, then this is for you–with love.
Photo by Jordan Whitfield on Unsplash
the scene changed in an instant
from one of trepidation, doubt
to a vision of anticipation of
things to come.
it is amazing how a single adjustment
in attitude or thought can make
all the difference, even when
nothing else really changes.
from one breath to the next
a whole world of possibility
reborn.
Heather Pound 2023
Photo by Catalin Pop on Unsplash
i want to consider kind eyes.
eyes that see the world at large
through a lens of kindness, and
extends that offering to others
around.
but also, desperately needed, is
for these kind eyes to turn within,
generously accepting who you
may or may not be.
the pressure to be something that
you are not just because someone
else is that characteristic can loom
large, let us put that one away firm.
the judgements that you make when
you glance into mirrors smooth,
things you would never demand of
others. let us fiercely replace those
looks with the kindest of
ones as well.
and what about your faults, things
you strive to change, but the
journey is slow. what would it
be like if we gazed upon those
with kindness, too?
oh, to have kind eyes for yourself
and the world around. what a
productive, healing change of
consequence that would be.
and one already available right
here, well within our range of
choice that can change the
world–for free.
Heather Pound 2023
Photo by MohammadHosein Mohebbi on Unsplash
this place of sadness is not my home,
neither is the space that is anxiety.
i may visit them, yes, but my
true home is found in the place
of peace.
and if peace is a bit dusty today
i can walk right in, broom in hand,
the rightful owner of this house,
and get to work
dusting off worries and surface cares
plumping the cushions, making the tea,
and sitting down in front of fire friendly
to savor this place, this space, this peace,
my home.
peace can feel elusive, lost far off
in the distance, but is often just
a bit of intentionality and
sorting of self away.
Heather Pound 2023
Photo by Luke Stackpoole on Unsplash
Heather Pound 