Heather Pound

if you do not feel you can handle

this life for even one more day,

there is reassuring news indeed.

 

your history does not your future

need to be.

 

if those feelings and memories

loom large and invite you to think

back where you have been,

 

then take a breath, and start again

–as many times as you may need–

and this life that you live today can be

 

increasingly distant from the one that’s been

as you lift your eyes and look to horizons

wide, different paths, alternate directions.

 

it may not feel like it

right in this moment,

but you, even and especially you,

have the power to make this happen,

 

to modify direction, no matter how small,

leads to enormous change, like arrows

drawn on page that start on the same

dot, but with the most minimal variation

grow increasingly apart with distance.

 

and this does not need to overwhelm,

the process can be as gentle as required,

and all these small, manageable things

together are mammoth in the end.

 

and i for one, cannot wait to see

what your life becomes.

 

and please remember, those burdens from

yesterday are far too heavy for this journey

ahead, so do not worry about when or

where or just how you do it—

 

but put them firmly down.

 

Heather Pound 2023

Photo by s. asah. on Unsplash

if you try to ignore the ache, gloss over, avoid,

shove down,

 

sooner or later it will overwhelm, anxiety

or maybe even worse numb, which also

anesthetizes any sort of joy,

or exhausts, even for years.

 

in nature we remove oxygen for a flame to subside

but trauma and sadness must breathe  

be noticed, losses acknowledged.

 

because when sorrow can speak, even eventually,

the container it lives in grows and makes room

for many other things.

 

and would you really want to snuff it out entire?

because joy is the sister of heartache

and grief intermingles with so many amazing things

once there is enough space.

 

and joy comes in the morning

so, hold on for that first ray of sun.

 

Heather Pound 2023

Photo by Titouan COLOMB on Unsplash

yesterday, i met a former gangster,

who had left behind his erstwhile ways

and i asked what had supported

him the most, allowing this to happen.

 

he glanced up, pointed to the sky,

“i met my sister’s God,” he said.

and his face glowed with light internal

as he spoke of fresh paths

 

forged from the fires of experience

but altogether new. having lived as  

powerful thug, until scooped out,

empty and hopeless within

 

he discovered that what he really

required was not power–but grace

 

merely grace, this

 

more powerful than he had ever imagined.

then, “i am still a work in progress.” i nodded,

“aren’t we all in need of a shepherd?” and

as we parted ways i wondered of this

 

sister, who had lived quiet, faithful and

i would like to discover her story as well,

because there is always another story

laid beneath, linked to generations past

 

layer upon layer, voice upon voice.

and i know that being a listener of

stories, is a day and life well spent.

 

Heather Pound 2023

Photo by Danny Lines on Unsplash

there it is again

that pesky thing that has been

nattering away inside your brain

all day and every day lately.

 

buzzing here and there

sapping energies

as you try your level best

to avoid its irritation

getting dutifully on with the day

 

but there it goes dashing and bouncing

and there you are, even more weary still.

 

this thing, it will continue to irritate

and just like a child in need

it will keep on saying, “look at me!”

until you stop all else

and attention give.

 

after all, don’t we all still have

that child still inside, the one that

desperately tries to speak,

 

aching to be heard and part of

the basics of our make up

that tells us what we need.

 

so, even when uncomfortable

inconvenient, reluctant even,

we must lean right in to listen

let it land upon and pierce the skin.

 

sometimes, whether you like it or not,

dear friend, you must just feel the sting

—because then the wound can heal.

 

Heather Pound 2023

photo by Cathi Geisler

it took me years to learn

that sometimes when

he says ‘nah, that’s ok’

what he really means is

‘yes—but only if you

care enough.’

 

and it took me time

to be intuitive enough

to know that it wasn’t

about the things, simple

things, like another

coffee or a treat,

 

he was fine without

them either way.

it was about whether

i cared enough to

plan and execute

the extra mile

—for him

 

and see needs and wants,

and act—just because.

to develop aptitude

and know him well

took time, with further

learning still ahead, but

is immeasurably worth it.  

 

—when your love is an ‘acts of service’ person and you are not.

 

Heather Pound 2023

Photo by tabitha turner on Unsplash

i want to let you know

that when your friend is

feeling low

 

your advice is more than likely

the last thing that they need.

 

instead, sit right down beside

open your ears and eyes

up wide.

 

let them know they are not

alone, and resist that very

human urge to fix

or advise

or evaluate

and especially

most importantly

zealously

do not judge. 

 

give them your time

your regard, your presence.

make that place safe.

 

believe in them

and then together

sit and

just

simply

be….

 

and if any conversation occurs

then let them take the lead.

 

Heather Pound 2023

Photo by Angelo Pantazis on Unsplash

when i came into this world,

eyes wide and overwhelmed with wonder,

i deduced that there was light here

and that the light was good

and what i wanted most in this world

was to absorb as much of it as possible.

 

perhaps this is what has strengthened bones

when clouds have covered sun,

when the rains fell fierce

and darkness crept ever nearer.

 

and if i have only one thing

to bequeath to you

it is this,

 

be a seeker, absorber and

passionate follower of the light

and then, even by default,

be a bringer of light to all

that you meet.

 

this i believe with so much ferociousness

that i would give all that i have to grasp

the coattails of light’s last ray,

even for a moment more to bask  

in the glow.

 

so, breathe in light until there is no

room for darkness left within your

frame. let light grip your hand and

never fear darkness again.

 

Heather Pound 2023

Photo by Isumi Daizy via Unsplash

in the spirit of transparency

i want to let you know

that while i may appear,

sometimes at least,

put together without,

i am always learning

to be put together

within.

 

no matter what your

impression of me may be,

i still have things to learn,

i still have spots blind.

 

i still work towards

kindness and ever-always

general put-togetherness.

 

i may look sorted outside

but some days i am

rumble-tumbling on the in

fighting insecurities,

battling emotions,

sorting out my

frequently tangled

thoughts.

 

i keep thinking that someday

maybe i will arrive, but

perhaps it is better this way.

it keeps me humble,

 

invites me to have short

accounts with myself and

others , remember my Source

and consistently teaches

multitudes of helpful things.

 

so, if this is any way like

you are, too, i see you.

 

let us nod and offer quiet, kind

looks of understanding as we meet

upon the street–but i am open

to high-fives, too.

 

Heather Pound 2023

Photo by Jennifer Griffin on Unsplash

while you inherently,

devotedly, vehemently

might despise the

raging battle

 

you never would

have gotten where

you are now without

the power of its

influence,

 

would have never

found the strength

that gathered within,

 

never have fostered

the growth that you

needed to arrive

at the place that

you are today,

 

stretched those

limbs

developed those

lungs.

 

and if there  

was never a battle,

fierce as it may be

 

you would not have

found the gold  

or discovered

victory.

 

Heather Pound 2023

Photo by Rod Long on Unsplash

i will not lie,

you may not ever get over this,

but you can get through it

 

one foot in front of other

one decision at a time.

 

and i will not sugar-coat it,

the going may be more arduous

than you ever imagined

 

but if you keep on moving

you will find that walking becomes

easier with each passing mile and

the gravity that pulls you back is less

 

and less, until one day you will realise

just how far that you have roamed

and that experience monstrous

is but a dot in distance.

 

your wounds, while scarred, have

healed now and very seldom ache

and your heart that felt like boulder

heavy is buoyant and gathers in the sun.

 

and you will lift your head and gasp

with the freshness of the air in lungs

that struggled once to breathe

 

and your eyes, blinded previously

by waterfalls of tears, will drink in

beauty once again.

 

i will not minimize the things that you

are feeling now…

 

but i can assure you without a shadow

of a doubt, that as you keep on going

and moving

and breathing

and living,

you can–and will –get through.

 

Heather Pound 2023

Photo by Noémi Macavei-Katócz on Unsplash