February Poem of the Month

The weather this month has been anything but usual. Here in Oregon, we have been warm with little precipitation. Our mountains have maybe 15% of the snowpack they should have, our rivers are low, the rain comes in a misty drizzle. While I was in Pennsylvania the weather was odd; minus zero temps, little snow, lots of sunshine.

But on my yoga mat I find stability in my own weather patterns. The fluctuations remind me to return to my breath, to return to the only thing that seeks my attention, the present moment.

This month’s poem comes from my sunrise yoga practice, from within the storm.

Namaste
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

A Piece of the Storm
By Mark Strand

From the shadow of domes in the city of domes,
A snowflake, a blizzard of one, weightless, entered your room
And made its way to the arm of the chair where you, looking up
From your book, saw it the moment it landed.
That’s all There was to it. No more than a solemn waking
To brevity, to the lifting and falling away of attention, swiftly,
A time between times, a flowerless funeral. No more than that
Except for the feeling that this piece of the storm,
Which turned into nothing before your eyes, would come back,
That someone years hence, sitting as you are now, might say:
‘It’s time. The air is ready. The sky has an opening.’

Powder

7 a.m. Leaving the pool after swimming my first mile.

Orion watching the flakes swirl and the neighborhood kids play.

Limbs dressed in long white gloves.

Contemplating flurries.

A good day to read a book.

Yuletide

Snow Angels

What a glorious day! The quiet hush of the world wrapped in a blanket. The gentle glow when day turns to night. I love the snow.

Especially when it comes as a surprise, and only rare occasion.

Pleasant dreams.