Test of Flight

You have come to lie upon the moss
beside the stream where your anguish may seep
into the stones and wash down-river.

Your tears unshed may weep.

The places you run to have failed
to comfort, you need to lie down.

Reach out through treetops and beyond
into the cycles of planets
and the furthest reaches of stars, beyond.

Until you remember yourself a bird -
a maturation of feathers
have grown through the fluff of youth.

Your hunger urging you over the
edge of the nest has long vied
with the fear that holds you back.

There is an eagle that hovers over
nests of waiting, where young ones
may observe the effortless way
each wing takes the updraft.

Through his eyes the invitation calls
until you feel ready to take the test of flight.

No matter what the outcome,
you will follow.

Jenneth Graser

#write31days
Day 7 Prompt - test

Artist - Johan Hoekstra

Taking Some Risks

One of the most special experiences so far this year was when I joined a Poem-a-thon for the first time with Tiferet Journal in April.

Leaping into a writing adventure with fellow poets was such a growing and widening time.  I learnt so much and felt myself stretching to release each poem into the day, a response to each sensitively written prompt.  A poem a day for the whole month of April!

THIS HAS BEEN A YEAR OF TAKING SOME RISKS.

Secondly, the notion of joining a poetry competition was something only for "maybe one day when...".  But my husband encouraged me to go for it and just enter.  Not for the possible outcome, but for the pure pleasure of it.  So I found myself click "enter" as my poems found their way into a first ever poetry competition.

We have been leaving some old seasons behind.  With grateful thanks to God for the richness, growth and great learning curve of the last 7 years those seasons had to offer.

And now we are looking ahead with a, "What's next Pappa?"  And finding it's OK to not know.  To trust.  To embrace the present moment.  To take a leap into something new, and to take some risks.

What are the risks you are being invited to take?

It can be something small, so as to feel almost insignificant.  It can be something you've been wanting to do for a long time, but always felt maybe one day.  It can be something really big.  But you know what it means to you.  And when you step out into that fresh new experience, you know you are never going to be the same again.

Here is a link to my poetry on the Tiferet website: http://tiferetjournal.com/april-2016-poem-a-thon/poems-by-jenneth-graser-2016/
Please also take a look at the wonderful writing of fellow poets and friends I had the privilege to meet: http://tiferetjournal.com/april-2016-poem-a-thon/

My poem Convergence from the Poem-a-thon was published in the Tiferet Spring Journal 2016.  You can subscribe to the Tiferet Journal here: http://tiferetjournal.com/the-journal