Suchness of Loved Ones....

The theme of "Suchness," in the month of February is kicking my @$$, in regards to relationships with my loved ones. It's been awhile since I posted a poem and this morning as rain turned to snow, the muse of deep looking tapped me on the shoulder. A dear sweet member of my family has given me permission to blog this poem of insight that was the result. In doing so, may it alleviate suffering in all beings and help water seeds of hope in the enduring opportunities for transformation (IC Truth number #3).

Photographs
February 20, 2017
©Karla Johnston, InnerConstellation.com

I was leaving you
to go to the country club
and dine with the in-laws.
Wise 5-year-old heart knew I preferred to stay with you.
Arms wrapped tightly around the other
in a goodbye embrace.
We turn for a picture, catching a moment in time…
heads pressed together,
infatuated grins mirror the other as we squeeze close.
Our dark eyes sparkle against a crushed black velvet dress,
no tears--confident in the enduring presence of love.

Now, year 2017, Day after Valentine’s,
an entirely different photograph:
dark eyes askew, drool clings to trimmed beard.
DUI, fleeing arrest.
I’m on the other side of the screen,
so immediate my love for you,
breathing to calm a racing heart.
Thoughts bombard—could have killed himself,
killed another….

I carry both photographs to the altar,
prop them against a yellow flowering begonia,
sit down and get still.
All my life, I’ve pondered this mystery:
why don’t I love everyone as deeply as my kin?
Breathing in,
breathing out,
finally an answer is born--
because I’ve experienced my loved one’s goodness,
I have known their shining beauty
not just their scorn.

Gaze at the pictures, child and man,
breathe, my dear.
In every human being all possibilities exists--
the lovable child and the slobbering drunk.
Do not be moved--
be forever grounded in goodness
and the enduring presence of love.