you hear the clearing of a throat
first whispers of a hum
not quite on pitch but
comforting all the same
as your heart, that has hibernated long
awakens
thawing slow in springtime sun
and before too long at all
(or perhaps at long, long last)
your heart, that has beaten all along
faithful
but silent
raises its head to open its mouth
and singsā¦
and that long-awaited sound
and the gladness that it brings
is worth every, single moment
of a lengthy winterās wait
heather pound 2025
Photo by Joshua J. Cotten on Unsplash
what must he have thought as the rooster crowed
and the memory came of words recently spoken
that he would deny not once, not twice
but thrice
certain of his devotion, upon his own his strength
claiming he never-ever
would falterā¦
ā¦but then the rooster crowed
when faced with mortal fear, alone
and failure
pierced his soul
then he fled away to weep
humanity confirmed
needy, broken, fragile heart
(like yours, like mine)
now seenā¦
yet later, as āthe rockā he would become
he admitted his blind spots
was open to change
since the crux of his pride tearfully
painfully
unforgettably
washed away
on the night of his deepest shame
--our biggest failings often lead
to our greatest strengths
heather pound 2025
Photo byĀ Marco J HaenssgenĀ onĀ Unsplash
he followed me through dark hallway
into the courtyard where i lived
and when i turned uncomfortable,
he leered and came close, groping
i shoved him away, told him to leave
in the language that he spoke
and ran up spiral staircase
to the safety of my home
fastening main gate behind
telling my husband what happened
i unpacked my bag of groceries
purchased to feed our family
at the local outdoor bazaar
a few minutes later, i turned
and there he was
in the doorway smirking
three stories up, darkness behind.
arriving at my cry, my husband
ushered him back the way he came
and some of our neighbours
joined the fray, indignant
and later we considered that
he was perhaps too stoned
to realise
that my home was not a brothel,
that i was not for sale
like other unfortunate women
100 meters up the road
that night i was safe
but women i passed daily
were absolutely not
i was grateful--
and discounted this experience
as ānot as badā as theirs
shoving it down, ignoring
even though for weeks
i startled and turned
while at my kitchen bench
senses and body remembering
and became hypervigilant
when leaving my home
at all
it wasnāt until much later
that i learned trauma is trauma
is trauma
it is never a competition
and someone elseās will always
be worseā¦ā¦..always
that even smaller events just pushed aside
can build upon themselves, like stones
in a fence increasing
that even mine were valid
needed to be acknowledged
(not relived, but recognised)
in order to begin to heal
--please know and understand
that yours are valid too
Photo by Amy Elting on Unsplash
there is no right or wrong way
to do this
it does not need to quickly turn
into deeply meaningful lessons learned
it does not have to be comfortable
or easy
or ever really āmake senseā
and there are no certain amount
of sanctioned days before
you must then be okay,
sometimes grief is simply meant
to beā¦ā¦
and then
it is meant to be carried
-this is how healing softly, slowly steals in
heather pound 2024
when we are invited to walk
into the home of someone new,
we come in softly, sit on the seat shown
sip on the cuppa offered
and listen
āour mothers taught us this
we resist the urge to comment
upon cracks in walls
and plaster thatās chipped
--we understand the occupant
is surely aware of these
we do not suggest when to start a remodel
or what dƩcor they should install
--we know this is not our place
and above all, we would not pick up tools
open tubs of paint
and push aside the owner
to begin
we would never-ever do this
when visiting a home,
so why do we sometimes assume
we can try to āfixā
the heart and mind of another
uninvited?
Photo byĀ Lena PolishkoĀ onĀ Unsplash
We lived for several years in the city that remembers Mother Teresa well. Reading her words while there profoundly impacted me (and they do still), but what people of Kolkata remember is not her words–but the way that she cared.
Not a bad reminder at all.
he empties the dishwasher every single
morning and makes the messy bed
rain or shine
without ever being requested
āyes of course-go aheadā he says
when i want to try something new
add to my interests
express my talents
spend time with a friend
āi have noticed that you might be tiredā
he says, when i have done or felt too much
and am headed towards exhaustion
--long before i would have
noticed on my own
ādid you remember sunscreen?ā he asks
as we walk out the door for a day outside
even though he never needs it
but i doāand often forget
--some of the ways he says āi love youā
without even saying the words
heather pound 2024
Photo byĀ Joshua WoronieckiĀ onĀ Unsplash
you sit in the sun
feeling springtime warmth
soak into wintered skin
with a light and gentle breeze
as winged soloists twitter and trill
and the scent of fresh and blooming
things floats past
in steady rhythms
nature has waited
and is now prepared
to blossom once again
and she whispers soft, ādo not forget
during seasons when winter
wraps around your heart
--this too shall always passā
heather pound 2024
Photo byĀ Edu GrandeĀ onĀ Unsplash
if you gather fresh leaves
and force them down
into a damp bin
all squished in, crushed
and sealed tight
then over time if you press in
more and more and moreā¦.
pretty soon you will have
a slimy, gooey, smelly mess
disgusting
but if you allow the leaves
to be out in the open
exposed to the elements
even if they are messy
and crinkle when you walk
(for a time), they will
wither
and
dry
then one blustery autumn day
they might blow away
or enrich the soil
in the course of winter rains
nourishing the growth
of green, green growing things
in the coming spring
---the difference between squashing down
painful emotions and letting them breathe
heather pound 2024
Heather Pound 