A Multitude of Moments

Grounds for Thought.

The name churns through my mind.

Because as I was sitting, drinking my latte I found that there was no grounds on which these thoughts were standing.

It is a time of transition, of change.

Here are my Thoughts in exchange for Grounds that I may stand firmly on--processed soil.

*  *  *

I like Spring because everyone comes out of their winter shells and risks vulnerability through “hellos” to strangers and smiles at passerbys.

Refreshing.

*  *  *

I have witnessed moments of enough.

Moments of “not too much” and “not too little.”

Moments of “we’ll make do” and “here’s all I have.”

Ice cream at Dairy Queen paid for by a leftover gift card.

Dumped into plastic bowls and stirred with the flimsy spoons.

Enough.

Enough is a new concept--

Adapting the old into new.

Glass jars into vases and spaghetti four nights in a row.

Clothes reduced and reused and traded.

Moments of want replaced by moments of wonder.

Dinner of baked beans and orange slices cooked by a friend.

Plentiful.

*  *  *

She opens the door as the clock strikes late.

A haven of hospitality.

“Oh, I thought you meant spend the night tomorrow,” she whispers.

I shake my head, saying that I can leave.

“No; come in,” she invites.

I put my suitcase next to the couch as she tiptoes through the quiet apartment.

“Here are blankets!” she exclaims.

She doesn’t know the reason that I came, yet she knew I needed a place to go.

I awake in the morn fully rested, cared for by comradery.

*  *  *

There is power in presence,

Of just being together with another human.

Eating chocolate ice cream out of mugs,

Sitting on the balcony watching the wilderness,

The rabbits jumping over one another as if in a circus.

There is a townie couple walking.

“Johnny, hurry up! The trains comin!’

The train travels by at a snail’s pace, holding up the cars for blocks.

We find beauty in the moments of perceived annoyance.

Simplistic.

I see the power of presence

In walking alongside a woman of wisdom

Not a word said from either one

As we both were content with the silence.

We were walking through a nature trail,

A snake slithering to my left, trees collapsing on my right,

Meandering through the wood mulch as a last adventure.

There was a rectangle rainbow in the sky

Directly above the Border Meadow.

On our way back, we encountered three deer

Eating the brush alongside the trail.

We tiptoed along, astounded at our proximity.

As we said our good-byes, I was reminded that

Every moment with another is a gift to be treasured and held dear

Prescence.

*  *  *

The stars and stripes blanket was sprawled on the lawn

As was I, with two dear friends eager for change.

We swapped ideas and hopes and dreams,

Thirsting for action, and raw community,

Speaking of ways to implement and initiate these desires in the coming year.

We listened to one another intently and intentionally.

Before long the sky was dark,

Yet we were still on fire.

*  *  *

Sitting at Grounds for Thought, I ruminate about these events.

How all of these moments added together compile a week,

And weeks compiled are years, and years compiled together are a lifetime.

It is the moments in the present that truly matter.

Intrigued, I sip my latte.

*  *  *