Thursday, April 5, 2018

SJFT & NPM: Poetry as a Spiritual Practice of the Heart

Welcome to Spiritual Journey First Thursday, a group of friends who blog together each month about our spiritual journeys. 


Carol at Beyond Literacy Link is 
our host for today where her topic is
Poetry as a Spiritual Practice of the Heart.

Meandering the words of poets
and well-loved verses of scripture,
I ponder the power of
poetry and spiritual practices
to bring pause to the pandemonium,
to slow my racing pulse,
I drink of living water.
I breathe deeply.
I am still.
I pray.

- Ramona Behnke, 2018
(with gratitude for borrowed lines from "The Wild Geese" and "The Peace of Wild Things" both by Wendell Berry and faith-filled words from scripture)

National Poetry Month 2018
"Give praise with friends near and far,
flinging words to the sky!"
- Amy Ludwig VanDerwater

8 comments:

  1. Love how you gathered words to tell of the power of poetry and scripture!

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  2. Yes, a lovely gathering. I do love that line from Berry about the "day-blind stars." Enjoy the stillness as you wait with your light.

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  3. This is great, Ramona! I really like how you use the repeated "p"s in these lines:

    "I ponder the power of
    poetry and spiritual practices
    to bring pause to the pandemonium,"

    followed by lines that are much quieter, to create a contrast that suggests tranquility.

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  4. It's really pretty, Ramona. I like the idea of collecting lines, a way to bring all together, people, too.

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  5. Your "gathered words" and the shape of your poem brings us to the most essential of spiritual practices. Thank you, Ramona.

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  6. Ramona, combining your words with phrases has opened a new dimension to your writing, one that benefits us, the readers. I love the fact that all of us can fling words to the sky and make our relationship with each other and spiritual essence stronger.

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  7. Dear Ramona, you are a word-gatherer indeed! So much to love here, so much beauty and meaning... I crave stillness these days, and enjoy it, too, more than ever. Amazing what one hears in the stillness. xo

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