Hiking – My Inspired Life

Tackle that mountain, I will,
but first let me rest.
Fifteen quiet clicks are all I need,
because I can’t climb feeling like this.
Exhausted thoughts and limbs
just need a brief escape,
and then those shoes with extra grip,
I will lace.
Lights off and eyes closed before
I begin my late afternoon ascent.
My body instantly melts into the mattress
and my mind, into the mysterious abyss.

Fifteen stretched into thirty.
Still too brief –
this siesta needs an encore.
A peaceful room records
automatic and rhythmic echoes –
inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale …
My body sinking deeper and deeper,
releasing all tension, increased
by this nonstop 21st century.
My mind floating freely,
far removed from this
earthly existence.
A screaming alarm,
I wanted to ignore
but I chose to respond –
uniting my mind and body
once more.
My heavy eyes I opened
and my heavy feet,
I placed on the floor.

My mind and body shaky and unsure;
I took one step, then another,
then another,
then another …
Breathtaking splendor in all directions
soon made me forget
about my weighty hesitation.
My mind now alert,
grateful to be walking this path.
Thankful, it was, to have abandoned sleep
and to have settled back in
to a body that likes to resist.

Walking alone for stretches at a time.
I completely lost sight of you.
Isolation, except for the tiny figures I see
in a boat or a canoe.

We started our walk together,
but you quickly disappeared.
Slow steps –
too much to capture
through my lens.
Quick steps-
Eager you were
to keep up your pace.

Maybe I should keep up,
maybe the sun will set
and alone at the top I will be,
maybe there is a mountain lion
tracking my speed,
maybe, waiting and watching,
she crouches behind me.
Maybe I should just breathe
and enjoy the crunching of the rocks
beneath my feet
and the sound of the solo flyer,
flying higher than any peak.

I am so glad I didn’t let rest
steal my afternoon,
because if I had kept sleeping,
look at all my mind and body
would have missed.

Thank you for stopping by and reading my poem about hiking on what would have otherwise been a lazy afternoon. I am so glad I laced up my shoes and made it to the top! I caught up with my husband, who took this shot. 😏 I hope you have tackled your own mountains this week and that your climb has energized you. ❤️ Have an inspired weekend! Michele

50 Life Stories Update: I am working on Story 46. When I complete this one, only four more to go. I am so close! 😊 50LifeStories.com

Pictures 1-9: Taken while hiking Yavapai Point Trail, Lake Pleasant, Peoria, Arizona

Symmetry and perfect vision are writing themes that began my year –

represented by four numbers that appeared, when 2019 rang a final chime.

Four numbers, marking a new decade, that I have written several times.

I write the first two familiar digits, then my fingers hesitate.

Holding my pen, or resting on keys, my fingers wait.

Waiting for a signal for the number that should come next …

concentration complete, I can now duplicate the pair.

Did my fingers stutter, did I accidentally repeat?

No, these are the numbers, two zero two zero, twenty twenty –

a balanced beginning, simplistically revealing harmonious things.

I ponder that this balanced theme may be just a dream –

a fabrication of my mind.

My desired theme, may actually be

a mislabeled container that doesn’t reveal what is inside.

“Numbers never lie,” or so they say, but these digits

are deceptive; they made me want to believe.

That our 365 days, plus one leap,

would be a path of perfect vision and symmetry.

But I only need to click on the remote, or open a feed,

and see that these themes do not exist in everyone’s reality.

Blurred vision and imbalance are what I see,

when missiles are launched at the enemy,

and fires rage as residents and animals attempt to flee.

Marking the year, the passing of seasons,

the balanced digits are only that, not a universal theme.

If perfect balance was achieved, what a blessing it would be,

but for now, my paradigm exists only in the land of make-believe.

Realizing that balance can never survive,

when the goal is to destroy or devour,

as powerful governments, and raging fires try.

I walked away from my keyboard and my screens,

and set out to find another model of symmetry.

Delighted, I found it under me, around me, and above me.

Nature restored my hope in symmetry, if not humanity.

I stood in awe of her grandeur, her balanced harmony.

Diverse plants and animals coexisting, taking only what they need.

Not caring about the passing of a year, or an attached theme.

Nature – symmetry beautifully designed,

if we leave her alone and allow her to thrive.

Thank you for stopping by and reading my poem about seeking balance, beauty, and symmetry. I hope that you are finding balance and beauty in your world.

If you are receiving my blog through email, thank you for taking the time to read my words and glance at my photos. For optimal viewing, consider going directly to the web @ https://myinspiredlife.org/blog-feed/ for each post. Have an inspired weekend! Michele

Picture 1: Agave Plant, Desert Botanical Garden Picture 2: Charred tree, Havasu Riviera State Park, Arizona Picture 3: Saguaro Skeleton, Desert Botanical Garden Picture 4: Palo Verde, Desert Botanical Garden Picture 5: Small Barrel Cactus, Desert Botanical Garden Picture 6: Hiking Calderwood Butte Trail, Peoria, Arizona

My Inspired Life

Tag: Hiking

Take Fifteen, then Tackle that Mountain

In Balance and Beauty, I want to Believe