‘Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?’
– from the poem ‘The Summer Day’ by Mary Oliver –
~ ~ ~
The business of bees, dizzy with industry, intoxicate me in the clover patch.
Tiny, delicate trim of blue lace flowers sing of youth and beauty
to thin, feathery spikes of uncut summer grass.
Going nowhere in particular,
I am grateful to have discovered the heart of an old rose,
just before her petals fell, her one wild and precious life spent.
Going nowhere in particular,
when clouds darken my sky,and storms threaten,
I am given
the wisdom of men who write careful words with such generosity,
no applause expected.
I build castles in the sky,
for this one wild and precious life,
and everywhere I look, I find a destination to remember.
Oil painting ‘Castle In The Sky” © 2014 Teri Flynn
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About maskednative
There is a gazebo at the end of the garden. It overlooks the estuary. When the tide is in, sea water pools around seaweed covered rocks. The sound is peaceful, meditative. I drink an early morning coffee, listen to the birds singing morning songs, watch a spider spin his fragile life between timber beams above my head. Even in the harshest of winters, the rise and fall of tides, sun-light on water, movement of sky, cloud, moon and stars, allows an awareness of nature behind the mask of perceived reality. I offer my words and pictures in celebration and gratitude to God, for allowing me a glimpse behind the mask.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Bio: Teri Flynn was born in Wales of Welsh and Irish Parents. Educated in England, she moved to Co.Waterford, Ireland in 1997 where her Poetry has since appeared in “The Turning Tide” – an anthology of new writing from Co.Waterford. “Southward” The Journal of the Munster Literature Centre and “Imagine” The Tallow Writers Group quarterly review. Her poetry appears in “Sticky Orchard”, a group effort with Alan Garvey, Jim O’Donnell and Anthony O’Neill and grant assisted by Waterford County Council’s Arts Grant Scheme. “Listening To The Grass Grow” with Jim O’Donnell and Anthony O’Neill was published by Edward Power at Rectory press and most recently, in ‘Murmurings’, Remembering Anthony O’Neil, with Jim O’Donnell and Alan Garvey.
Her poem Queen Of The Sea was included in the Chesapeake Exhibition at RUH, Bath, 2011. Figurehead Carver, Andy Peters. Photographic display of Ship’s Figurehead Carvings by Richard Sibley – http://www.tallshipsgallery.com
A themed display of her oil paintings and poems entitled Cynefin, were on display in Waterford during The Imagine Festival in 2017. Cynefin-pronounced kuh-nev-in is a Welsh word meaning habitat or place. A place where a being feels it ought to live, where nature around you feels right and welcoming.
I’m enjoying your paintings “in blue” This one is very evocative….wonderful and inspiring
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Thank you so much Jana, I really appreciate your opinion. The painting, like some poems, seemed to paint itself.
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Reblogged this on Teacher as Transformer and commented:
The post had me with the Mary Oliver question introducing it. What do we do with that one wild life we are given? We can build castles in the sky with it and find memorable destinations throughout.
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Thank you for reblogging this post of mine, I am indeed grateful and very pleased that you thought it worth while.
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You are welcome. I love Mary Oliver’s poetry and you captured the spirit so well.
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I was so caught up in the simple beauty of the descriptive words which danced softly within my mind…thanks for sharing….it is a very lovely and meaningful poem! Blessings!
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Your kind words are very beautiful, thank you.
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Ah, such beauty of words and paint and emotion. Thank you for the inspiration.
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Thank you, your complementary response is inspiration for my amateur art.
Your blog looks so enticing, art, dance and poetry, wonderful. I look forward to catching up with your posts.
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Wild right enough! Adding that one small word to the age-old question sure stirs things up. 🙂
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Thank you Elizabeth, your comment is appreciated. That one word ‘wild’ certainly has stirred things up, rightly so, we need to find the wild places to remind us who we really are.
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Love your site! The selections you offer open ones eyes and heart to a deeper understanding of the world we live in
Thank you very much for following and opening the door to your exciting world! Eddie
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Your compliment is humbling, thank you very much.
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treasure
~
destinations
of
inner
explorations
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So many dimensions to explore.
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