Poetry Friday: Reaching for the Light!

Head over to Jone Rosh MacCulloch's blog 
for this week's round-up of poetic goodness. 

I'm struggling this week, but continuing to reach for the light (my OLW) in spite of friends' health challenges, two deaths in our extended family, and the state of our democracy. When I read Heidi's review of Finding Treasure last week, I was propelled to pull it off the shelf of books waiting to be read.  And I was not disappointed!

A favorite poem "Collecting Stars!" highlights the joy of fireflies with this opening phrase:

"When darkness deepens

sparks of starlight

dance around the yard."

The poem continues with a familiar image of a child capturing fireflies in a mason jar.

And then closes with these lines:

"those specks of light

aren't made to keep.

So float free - goodbye stars!" 

The book lay open to this page all week. While it may stretch the idea of the poem a bit, it spoke to me of reaching, seeking, and capturing light during dark times. And the act of releasing the fireflies? Maybe it's sharing the light we find with each other.

Here are a few sparks of light I've discovered or leaned on recently:

• A Facebook find on Martin Luther King Day - "Shed a Little Light performed by The Macabees and Naturally Seven 
• John Henry Newman's hymn, Lead, Kindly Light performed by Daniel Beck 
• Verses of scripture - "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." (Psalm 119:105) "And I will also be your light in the wilderness..." (1 Nephi 17:13)
• These words from Jerry Craft regarding his phone call from Kwame Alexander after his Newbery win - “I was so surprised, I thought it was Kwame Mbalia.” When he finally realized it was Alexander, “a light shone through my window on the phone and the angels started singing,” he said laughing.
  
• Playing hide and seek with my grandson & his insistence that an important prop is the illuminated flashlight that we carry when we are the seeker
• The joy of watching grandson revel in light and love at his 3rd birthday celebration
  

My focus for this past month has been a wonderful way to keep my OLW front and center as I've begun 2020. After a month of sharing light, I'm stepping away to my more traditional Poetry Friday posts of sharing poems, poets, or books that speak to me. However, don't be surprised if the light occasionally strolls into some of my posts.