Eclipsed

Oct 14

September 14, 2023 Annular Solar Eclipse
Albuquerque New Mexico photo © 2023 Nasa

Family, friends, community,

This morning I awoke after a night of unease.
No birds were singing for the new day.
Overcast, grey and hushed.
Darn it
darkness has descended here too.
Memory stirs,
today an annular eclipse was lending us a pause.
I went outside.
Small birds were perched in the trees and bushes.
Peckish squirrels, Feralina; the cat,
and the bold twin crows were all together
sitting on the ground in a semi circle.
Eyes slightly closed and skyward.
No vying for seeds, nuts or one another.
I sit quietly with them while
together we get eclipsed.

These days
move rapidly into blurred months.
Humans have not come together
to take pause,
and answer for
our immoral crimes,
our complacency,
our hate.
Humans eclipse others
for self aggrandizement
religious authority,
ethnic & gender purity,
and geo political hegemony.
There never is justification
for violent acts in the name
of these ideologies.

Our movement
towards coming together
begins with a pause.
Each day
to be brave
in the dark.
I call it
Inner Eclipsing.
It fortifies us
in knowing
there will always be
the eternal light.

May this forever light
shine upon
all those who suffer
and free them
from the causes of suffering.

Om Shanti
Shanti Om

M