Marshall Point Lighthouse, Port Clyde, Maine  1-21-18

I am drawn to the colors of the winter sea,
lost in the light,
surrounded by solitude
caressed by a gentle breeze,
while the rhythmic pounding of surf
washes away my grief.

February 7, 2018

In Memorium for Gardiner W. Brown, Sr. 1930 - 2018 Who loves ya, baby!

My Soul Has Found Her Place Again

At the end of the day
On the banks of the stream
By the still water I stand
Warmed by the tea cup in my hand
And watch the calm water
Creased by the wake of a muskrat
Joyfully swimming through
The evening stillness.

I am in the best cathedral
The tall pines forming lush green walls,
And surrounded by the angel chorus
Of frogs,
And the whinny of the robins
As they settle in for the night.
This flat, gray water soothes my harried soul
And I feel the stillness settle in my spirit
And nestle around my beating heart
And I know,
My soul has found her place again.

~Kathie Adams Brown (April 24, 2016)

The Journey

Photo of Balanced Rock at Chiricahua National Monument courtesy of Donna Simonetti

I am going hiking

To a place I’ve never been,

To the snow covered Chiricahuas

To find my place of Balance

I can hear my footfalls,

I can feel the soft snowflakes falling on my face,

I feel the others with me,

Ancient spirits walking

This same trail

Seeking their soul’s moment,

Seeking and finding their balance

In this place so far from manmade things,

In this place so wild,

One is reborn

And made new.

I hear Raven calling,

Black wings against the white,

He is sharing his wisdom

And guiding my way.

With each footfall, I hear the chorus of garooing

Sandhill cranes emerge briefly in the shifting gray clouds above

Then fade away like phantoms in the mist,

While I watch each snowflake fall softly on the earth,

And coat the ground around me, erasing my steps

I follow the trail through lichen covered boulders

To the place of Balance

In these eternal heights

And I hold on.

I hold on to this thought

while the mask covers my face

and I slip into a dream

beneath the surgeon’s knife.

~Kathie Adams Brown (December 20, 2014)